Love Story in Aspen
by FudgyMuffins
Summary: Katniss and her two friends, Gale and Peeta take a school field trip to Aspen, Co. Will romamce blossom? Will friendships crumble? Read to find out what happens when a normal school trip turns into a life changing experience for Katniss. Modern Day, AU.
1. Chapter 1

**AN* Hello everyone! This is my first FanFic so please let me know what you think. It's a modern day story about the whole gang taking a school trip to Aspen. And this is a KatnissXPeeta story that will probably have a slight GaleXMadge pairing as well. So, I hope you enjoy. :) **

* * *

CHAPTER 1

"Katniss hurry! You're gonna be late for the train!" My sister Prim yells from outside the bedroom door where I'm still shoving the rest of my clothes into an old, worn suitcase that used to be my mothers.

"I'm coming just wait a sec!" I shout back. I quickly turn around, my dark braid falling over my shoulder as I scan the room for anything I might have missed. My eyes automatically land on the old leather jacket draped across the back of my computer chair. I grab it off the chair and gentle place it on the top of the wrinkled pile of clothes before I zip the suitcase closed. Hoisting it off the bed with ease, I consider plopping it on the floor and yanking the handle up so I can roll it but as quickly as the thought enters my mind, I shove it aside. It only weighs a few pounds with the minimal amount of clothes I packed so can easily carry it.

"Katniss!" Prim shouts again. I run to the door, suitcase in hand, and jerk it open to find my little sister standing in front of me, hands on her hips. "For someone who barely has any clothes, you take forever to pack. And nice procrastinating by the way." She says with a smirk. I try to muster a scowl but it's hard to stay mad at her so instead I settle for playfully sticking my tongue out at her. She giggles and returns the jester before grabbing my empty hand and hauling me to the front room.

My mother sits on the couch knitting a hat, or maybe a scarf, for Prim. She glances at us once we enter the room, giving me a small smile. It doesn't reach her eyes like it used to -before my father died. She hasn't been the same since then; always reserved and quiet. Most of the time she barely acknowledges me and Prim. I wouldn't mind her ignoring me but I can't stand it when she does it to Prim. She's only twelve and she needs her mother, not the empty shell that now occupies her body. Eyes hollow and distant, sunken cheeks and hair always matted against her head.

I shake my head to relieve the building anger that always accompanies any thoughts that surround my mother. As much as I can't stand her, now's not the time to start voicing such thoughts. I have a train to catch after all. Two weeks freezing my butt off in Aspen with a bunch of annoying highschoolers for a school field trip awaits me. _Joy. _

I don't even bother forcing a smile like I usually do when I interact with my mother. I only do it for Prim's sake anyway and right now she's distracted with pulling my suitcase out the door. So instead I follow her, leaving my mother with a simple, "Bye, mom." She doesn't even glance up, just gives me a curt nod before fumbling with her ball of faded purple yarn. I wouldn't be surprised if she doesn't even know where I'm going. She did have to sign the permission slip but she barely even glanced at it before signing her name. It would have been extremely easy to forgerize her signature anyway. Just a few coherent letters here and there and a swirly at the end and... done.

Once I'm outside, I squint trying to let my eyes adjust to the sun light. For a brief moment I wonder if this is what it will be like in Aspen or if it will be constantly cloudy and snowing the whole time. Prims already far down the road, skipping and pulling my suitcase along. She insisted that I allowed her to walk me to the station. I had originally planned to refuse because then she would have to walk home alone but she pulled out her puppy dog eyes and I couldn't say no. She turns around and waves me forward, a goofy grin plastered on her face. "Come on, Katniss! Gosh, you're so slow!" She teases. I'm pretty sure Prim is more excited for this trip than I am. And she's not even going. She's still in middle school and the trip is only for highschoolers. "Don't want to keep Gale and Peeta waiting too long, right?" She says with another giggle.

_Dang_. I forgot about Gale and Peeta. I was supposed to call them before I left. Last week we decided to meet up at the old lamppost a few streets down from the train station. I pull my phone out of my back pocket and check the time. There's still about fifteen minutes until the train arrives so they're probably there already. I jog and quickly catch up to Prim, snatching my suitcase back. We hurry down the road and once my eyes land on the lamppost I notice Gale leaning against it with his suitcase resting at his feet. His dark hair ruffled.

"Catnip. Prompt as always." He says with a smirk. I scowl at his comment and punch him in the shoulder.

"Shut up, Gale." I tell him.

"Did you forget about our magical trip to the snowcapped mountains of Aspen?" He asks sarcastically. I think he's even less thrilled than I am. But we had to do it for fear of failing the semester. It was either this or summer school. And it doesn't help knowing that Prim will be left alone with my mother for two weeks. I don't trust my mother at all and I can only be thankful that Prim knows how to prepare a few certain meals for dinner with the money I left with her. I had taken on extra shifts at the Blue Sky Market, the local market to make sure she had enough money for food once I left. I also went hunting yesterday and got some extra game while out. So with that and the money it should cover her for two weeks.

"Yes! I think she would have completely forgotten if I hadn't woken her up this morning!" Prim pipes in, exasperated with me. _Yeah, thanks for that Prim_, I think.

"I didn't forget." I mumble, causing Gale to laugh at me. I quickly shoot him a glare but he just laughs harder.  
"Where's Peeta?" I ask as I glance around.

"You know Baker Boy, he's probably icing a cake or something."

"Gale, are you ever going to call him by his real name?" I ask him.

"No, I've called him that for years. Why stop now?" He says with a smirk. "Plus, hes never said anything about it."

"That's because he's too nice to say anything." I retort.

"And that's my problem?"

I sigh and pick up my suitcase again and start walking towards to station. Gale is soon at my side with Prim trailing behind slightly. He plops his arm around my shoulder as we walk and I fight the urge not to shake it off. Gale has been my best friend since I was Prim's age but I have never done well with any kind of physical contact unless it's from Prim. He knows that and that's why he put his arm around me, to try and get a rise out of me. But I want give him that satisfaction, so instead I grit my teeth and continue walking, hands balled into fists at my sides. Out of the corner of my eye I can see Gale's smirk.

Once we make it to the train station a few minutes later it's already swarming with teenagers giggling, shouting and laughing at the top of their lungs. I cringe at the noise and Gale's arm slides off my shoulders. Neither of us do well him large groups of people. That's more of Peeta's forté. I grab Prim's hand as we walk to a more secluded corner of the station while we wait.

It strange seeing the station so crowded. Nobody really uses the trains nowadays. Everyone has a car so why use the train? Whenever me and Gale pass the station on our way to the woods, the station usually only has one or two people here on a busy day.  
We watch from our spot on the wooden platform as a group of merchant boys laugh and shove each other.

I sneak a glance at Gale to find just what I was expecting. He's glaring at the group, his gray eyes hard as he watches them. I never understood why Gale hates the merchants so much. I know he thinks it's unfair they live better than the people that live in the Seam, like me and him, but that's no reason to hate them. He would probably have hated Peeta if I hadn't forced him to be nice and actually get to know him. And once he did, they have become great friends. All of us have.

My thoughts are cut short when I hear Prim squeal. "Peeta!" She shouts as she lets go of my hand and runs off. I look up to see Peeta a little bit ahead of us, duffle bag in hand. He drops it once Prim reaches him and he kneels down so he's eye level with her. She wraps her arms around his neck and his arms wrap around her to hug her back. He laughs as Prim practically jumps up and down with excitement. She absolutely adores Peeta. If it wasn't for their age they could practically be twins. Blond hair, blue eyes and that same captivating smile.

He grabs his bag in one hand and Prim's in the other. She skips next to him as they walk over, her blond braids flopping up and down with each skip.

"Hey guys." Peeta says as they reach Gale and I, a smile plastered on his face.

"You're too excited for this trip, Baker Boy." Gale says with a scowl.

"It's better than being stuck at home with my mother." Peeta replies, his smile faltering. He doesn't usually talk about his mother, just like I don't talk about mine. And I can't blame him, if my mother beat me I wouldn't talk about her either. Last year it got so bad that I would have to bring cover-up to school just to hide some of his bruises. I don't think I've hated his mother more in my entire life. I almost stormed to the bakery to punch her myself but Peeta told me she wasn't worth it. I still keep the cover-up in my bag for the days he still shows up with bruises.

"Katniss, are you alright?" Peeta asks, concerned. I have a feeling I missed part of the conversation. I force a smile so Peeta won't be concerned. That's the one thing about Peeta; no matter how much his mother beats him or screams terrible things at him, he is always worried about people other than himself. It amazes me how he can be so cheerful after everything he's been through.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry." I mumble. He eyes me warily for a moment but doesn't say anything and for that I'm grateful. I really didn't want to have to explain that the reasons for my zoning out was because of my hatred for his mother.

"So Prim, did Katniss give you the paints I told her to give you?" Peeta asks. At the mention of paints, Prim's eyes light up.  
"Yes! She gave them to me yesterday. I painted Buttercup!" She exclaims and I groan at the mention of Prim's old, scraggily tom cat. That thing hates me just as much as I hate him.

"Do you like them?" He asks.

"Oh, yes! Thank you, Peeta!" Prim answers as she jumps to give him another hug.

"You're welcome." Peeta chuckles as he hugs her back.

"Hey everyone!" We all turn our heads to see a very excited Delly Cartwright standing in front of us. Her blond hair curled at the ends with a pink bow pinned to the side of her head. "Aren't you guys excited? This is going to be so much fun. I just can't wait!" She squeals. I try to hold back a laugh as I watch Gale try to hold back a glare.

Thankfully Peeta is there to save us all from an awkward silence. "I am. I just hope I don't embarrass myself while skiing." He says with a small chuckle.

"Oh I know! But I'm sure you'll do fine." Delly assures. Peeta knows her better than anyone else. They have been friends since they were in diapers. Always playing with chalk on the sidewalk drawing cats and dogs. I'm sure even back then Peeta was an amazing artist.

"I would just love to see little Baker Boy try to ski. That would be a sight." Gale says with a smirk aimed at Peeta who just punches him in the shoulder.

"Like you could do better, Gale. You don't know how to ski either." Peeta reminds him.

"Who says I'm going to ski though?"

Me, Delly and Prim just stand and watch with amusement as the boys go back and forth about who would be a betters skier. I think it's a tie...at least that's what I tell them when they ask me for my opinion. I learned long ago to say they tie whenever they get into one of their male 'competitions'. Then, after some more idle chit-chat between Delly and Peeta, she heads off to her own group. Gale and I were never good with small talk so we usually just hang back and let them talk.

Not long after, Madge Undersee joins our group. She is definitely shyer than Delly which I couldn't be more happy about. And for being the Mayors daughter, she's not a snob as most people would expect. She stands next to Gale while Peeta stands next to me while he holds Prim's hand. I don't think he would get his hand back even if he wanted to; Prim's almost hanging onto it like it's a life line. Mine and Peeta's shoulders brush and he looks down at me with a smile that, before I even realize, I'm returning.

Our gaze breaks when we hear the chipper voice of our escort, Ms. Effie Trinket. She stands on a crate by one of the entrances to the train, bullhorn in hand. "Alright, get excited! It's a big, big, big day ahead! Time to board the train...single file, please." She yells through the bullhorn as she waves her hand in the air dramatically. I think her pink outfit and wig would be enough to get the kids attention without the bullhorn.

Gale and I groan as we pick up our suitcases. I turn to Prim who has finally let go of Peeta's hand and she wraps her arms around my waist as she hugs me. I kiss the top of her head. "Stay safe, okay? Don't answer the door unless it's the Hawthorne's or one of Peeta's brothers...or Mr. Mellark. I put the money in the first drawer in the kitchen. Be careful when you use the stove. Remember to turn it off when you're done and be careful when you place things in the oven. Oh, and if there's an emergency call 9-1-1 -"

"Katniss!" Prim cuts me off, "I know, I'll be safe. Don't worry. Go and enjoy yourself. I have your number and I'll call you every night, okay?"

"Man, Catnip. You practically talked her ear off." Gale says in amusement.

I huff at him before I turn to Prim and answer, "Okay. I'll be back in two weeks... I just want you to be safe."

"I know and I will. Don't worry." She says with a smile before she hugs me again.

"Bye little duck." I say as I hug her back. She lets go and turns to Peeta and hugs him as well. He whispers in her ear and she giggles before she lets go and turns to the rest of the group. "Bye Gale. Bye Madge." She says as she waves to them. They wave back as she turns and starts walking home.

I feel someone touch my arm and look up to see a pair of bright blue eyes. "She'll be fine. Don't worry, Katniss." Peeta says softly before he bends down and picks up my suitcase. He chuckles as he lifts it. "Do you even have any clothes in here? It feels empty." He says.

"Yes, I have clothes. And I can hold my own bag." I say with a huff as I reach for it. He moves it out of my reach and smiles at me

"Let someone do something for you at least _once_. Please." He pouts dramatically and I try to suppress a chuckle.

"Fine." I tell him curtly and he shoots me a triumphant grin. I look to Gale who rolls his eyes before snatching Madge's bag.

"Leave it to Baker Boy to make me feel guilty for not offering to carry someone's bag." He mumbles as he heads for the entrance. Madge just blushes and follows after him leaving me and Peeta standing on the platform alone. I look at him and he smiles shyly as he places his hand on my lower back and guides me through the crowd after Madge and Gale to the entrance of the train that will leave us in Aspen for two weeks.

This should be interesting.


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

The train is crowded with students trying to find a seat. They all look like a bunch of lost ants trying to find the ant hole that was stomped on by some kid. If I wasn't so bad in tight spaces, I probably would have laughed at how ridiculous they all look. Like finding a good seat is a cure for cancer.

This is definitely the most fancy transportation vehicle I have ever been on. The seats look wide enough for two people and there's almost enough room for someone to fall asleep if they lay in between the rows. And apart from the deep blue seats, the tan walls look crisp and fresh. The windows are so wide you could easily jump out of them, although I doubt that's a possibility...or that anyone would want to do that.

My admiring of the train is cut short when I feel someone push me forward lightly. I look to my side to see Peeta looking at me with an amused grin.

"What?" I ask defensively.

"Nothing. You've just been standing there with your mouth open for the past few minutes. Everyone's already seated." he says quietly.

I look around and, sure enough, everyone has already found a seat. I try to keep my cheeks from heating up as my eyes roam the aisles. It doesn't take long for them to land on Madge who is waving us over. I look up at Peeta and give him an apologetic smile to which he just chuckles and nudges me forward.

Once we get to Madge she points to the two empty seats behind her and Gale.

"We saved you guys seats." she says.

"Hope those are okay. You probably could have got better seats if you weren't standing in the middle of the row catching flies." Gale says with a snicker.

"Shut up, Gale." I say as I reach over and flick him on the head.

Peeta lugs our bags into the overhead compartment before he turns to me and asks, "Window or aisle seat?"

I contemplate it for a moment before I answer. "Aisle. I already feel cramped enough as it is."

Peeta nods and slides in first and I follow. I barely have time to get comfortable when Ms. Trinket is standing at the front of the train compartment. Whatever she was doing before she got here must have been exciting because her pink wig has shifted to the side. And from the murmurs of the other students, I can tell they're thinking the same thing as me. At least she ditched the bullhorn.

"Hello, students!" she shouts in her annoying chipper voice. "It's a big, big, big day. We should be arriving in Aspen late tonight so get comfortable. And once we arrive you will be assigned a room and a roommate and, because we are feeling generous, you may choose your roommate." With that, the train is loud with students hollering and cheering. "Of the same gender." Effie adds. And with that, there are groans. But some of the excited whispers continue.

Suddenly, I'm nervous about having a roommate. I usually wake up in the night screaming for my father. Ever since he died I have nightmares every night. The same one every time. The mine exploration, me trying to reach him in time, me failing. My father dying. Prim usually wakes me and tries to calm me down but most of the time it's futile. Every time I close my eyes, I'm plagued with my father's face as he dies.

I shake my head to release the thoughts of my father's death, the hollow feeling in my chest. I can't dwell on it. Not right now.

Madge pops her head over the back of her seat. "Want to be my roommate?" she asks.

"Sure." I say with a shrug. "It's better than being stuck with Glimmer over there." I say jokingly as I point to the blond who is currently applying lip gloss from across the aisle. Madge chuckles and turns her attention to Gale and Peeta who are holding a conversation over the chairs.

"-would you rather have Finnick as a roommate?" Gale asks Peeta.

"No. I don't feel like listening to him ramble on about how Annie is doing twenty-four seven." he answers with a slight chuckle.

"He wouldn't. And plus, I'm pretty sure everyone knows how she is doing." Gale says as he rolls his eyes. It's true, everyone does know how she is doing. At least they suspect. Annie can kind of be loopy sometimes. Don't get me wrong, she's extremely nice, almost Delly nice, but she has her moments. Everyone suspects she would go crazy if it wasn't for Finnick who seems to be the only one to calm her down.

"Nah, I'll be your roommate, Gale." Peeta tells him as he leans back in his seat. Gale looks relieved as he nods and turns back around in his seat. I must have missed something.

"Wanna play a game?" Peeta asks me a moment later.

I turn in my seat to face him better. "Okay, why do you have in mind?" I ask.

I laugh as he exaggerates looking deep in concentration as he thinks, his nose scrunched up. "Okay I got one." he says after a moment, his face lit up.

"What is it?"

"I Spy." he says earnestly, causing me to crack up once again.

"Seriously? I haven't played that since I was five."

"Yep. Are you ready for the hardest game of 'I Spy' you have ever played?" he says in mock seriousness.

I roll my eyes before I answer. "Ready."

* * *

The hours drag by but Peeta helps make them more bearable. Madge and Gale are to busy with their own conversation to even turn around to me and Peeta. I really don't mind because Peeta has me cracking up every other minute. After our game of I Spy, which I won -hunters eyes I guess- he started naming off a bunch of ridiculous rhymes for me to figure out. He won that game.

We still have a few hours until we reach Aspen and all the driving is making me tired but I refuse to fall asleep here. Who knows what would happen. I don't really feel like explaining my nightmares to the whole high school.

"You hungry?" Peeta ask me as he holds a box of cheese buns that he must have baked before we left. We ate lunch on the train a few hours ago but I'm already getting hungry again.

"Not really." I say simply.

"Oh come on, Katniss. I could hear your stomach growling from across the train." He says with a smirk.

"Okay, so I'm hungry. But I'm not taking your food, Peeta." I say sternly.

"It's just food. You won't owe me anything." he says assuringly.

"I'm not worried about owing you."

"Then you can have a cheese bun." he says as he holds on out to me. I groan.

"No, I'm not taking your food."

"You know, it's not polite to refuse a gift." he says softly. I look from the cheese bun in his hand up to his face. He looks like he's on the verge or pouting. He looks so pathetic, like a lost puppy, I almost crack a smile. He knows exactly how to get me to comply when he really wants me to. I groan again as I snatch the cheese bun from him. He smiles as he brushes the crumbs of his hands before grabbing one for himself.

I take a bite and my mouth floods with the warm, buttery bread. It's perfectly balanced with the cheese ontop. Peeta knows they are my favorite, which is probably why he brought them.

"Were you baking these this morning and that's why you were late?" I ask with my mouth full.

"No. I baked them last night. I was late today because I had a wedding cake order that my mother needed done before I left." his expression turns grim as he speaks about his mother.

"Did it turn out okay?" I ask.

"Yeah. I guess I wasn't fast enough, though." he says as he pulls up his shirt sleeve to reveal a large blue and purple bruise on his forearm.

"Oh, Peeta. I'm so sorry." I say quietly, my fingers ghosting over the bruise. I really hate his mother.

"It's okay." he says with a shrug and pulls his sleeve back down. I look up at his face to see the hurt he's trying to mask, his eyes a deeper shade of blue than normal.

"What was it this time?" I ask in a whisper.

"Just the usual." he says with a shrug. Of course, a spatula.

"I don't know how you can stand her." I say quietly.

"I don't really have a choice. Besides only one more year then I can move out. I just feel bad about leaving my dad home with her all the time."

"You really should take more time to care about yourself rather than other people. Your dad will be fine. Your mother doesn't touch him." I say bitterly.

"I know, but I still feel bad. She may not touch him but she yells at him just as much as she yells at me."

"I wish I could yell at her. She probably wouldn't touch you again."

"Katniss, you know I don't want you talking to her. She could hurt you." he says in a strained voice.

"You shouldn't worry about me. I could out run her anyway."

"I'm sure you could, but I really don't want to risk it."

"But it's not fair what she does to you." I say, annoyed with his mother.

"It's just one more year, Katniss." he says softly. "Plus, once I'm gone, who will she take her anger out on? Poor, unsuspecting customers?" he says in an attempt to lighten the mood but I don't bite. He looks down at his lap, defeated.

Without my permission, my hand reaches up to cup his cheek. He looks just as shocked as I feel before he closes his eyes and leans into my hand. After a moment, my hand slides from his cheek and he slowly opens his eyes. I look away to hide the blush growing on my cheeks and I automatically regret it.

A few rows across from us sits Cato. He's a senior with broad shoulders, even more broad than Peeta's. He's glaring at me like he has been the whole ride. Ever since I started high school he's had it out for me. He treats me like I'm his property. I hate it but he threatened to hurt Prim if I tried to do anything about it. He certainly knows my weaknesses. I can't risk Prim getting hurt. I haven't told anyone about, not even Peeta or Gale. They would definitely try to intervene and then Prim would get hurt. I'm not sure how he would do it and I don't want to test it an find out.

I look down at my lap. Cato hates me interacting with other boys and my actions with Peeta will most definitely have reprocutions. I can feel my cheeks flushing again but this time in anger. I would love to just punch him right in the face. I sigh as I think of Prim.

"Are you alright?" Peeta says softly.

I start with the proximity of his voice. I look over at him to find that I had shifted closer to him while I was watching Cato. Our legs are now touching and if I turn my face to him we could easily brush noses. I blush and scoot back over to my original spot.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I answer trying to sound calm. I can feel his eyes watching me, no doubt unbelieving of my lie. But he won't bring it up. He knows if I want to tell him I will.

I rest my head on the back of my chair and close my eyes, suddenly more tired than before. I tell myself that I will only rest for a few minutes but my thoughts are cut off as I starts to fall asleep.

* * *

The sound of snickering and whispers wakes me from my slumber but I keep my eyes closed, making sure to steady my breathing. I'm automatically confused. I mentally slap myself for falling asleep. How could I be so stupid?

I feel someone shake my arm lightly. I decide that right now is as good as another time to open my eyes. But I was not expecting to see Madge and Gale watching me, hand over the mouths to stifle a laugh. I quirk and eyebrow at them as I lift my head off Peeta's shoulder.

Wait...I turn my head to the side to see Peeta, cheeks flushed with a small smile, looking down at me. My eyes widen as I realize I must have scooter back over to Peeta when I fell asleep. My face immediately flushes beet red and I scoot back to my seat, pulling my hand from Peeta's. If it's possible, my blush deepens.

_Oh, great_, I mentally groan. Not only did I fall asleep on Peeta's shoulder, we somehow managed to hold hands. How did that one happen?

"You scooted over to me when you fell asleep...and then a little while after you grabbed my hand." Peeta says as if reading my mind. He looks down as his face flushes again from the snicker that keep getting louder.

I look up at Gale and Madge who's faces are bright red with the efforts to keep in their laughter.

"Sleep good, Catnip? You looked rather comfy." Gale says in between snickers. I blush again and this time they can't hold back their laughter.

I turn back to Peeta who is still blushing. "Sorry." I mumble.

He looks at me and gives me a small grin. "It's okay." he says quietly.

Just then Ms. Trinket enters the compartment. "Alright, students! Quiet!" she shouts. After the chatter stills she continues. "We have reached Aspen-" she's cut off by a round of hollering hooting. "In a few minutes we will be entering the station and making our way to The Capitol Hotel. So pack your things anD get ready. Wear a jacket. It's a big, big, big night!"

And with that she leaves the room as people start packing up, there excited hollers never dying down.

"Sorry Catnip, you're going to have to give Peeta sometime to pack up his stuff. But don't worry; you can go back to cuddling with him once we get to the hotel." Gale says with a smirk.

I groan and blush at his comment as I start to grab my things. I have a feeling this trip is going to be worse than I had originally thought.

It takes me awhile, as I pack up my stuff, to realize what was so strange when I woke up. Unless Gale, Madge and Peeta where too nice to mention it, which I doubt, I didn't have a nightmare.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN* I had another scene I wanted to add at the end of this chapter but it would have been too long to fit. So this chapter is a little shorter than the others. But don't worry, in the next chapter I will introduce more of our favorite charactors. Yay! :) **

* * *

CHAPTER 3

As soon as I step off the train, cool crisp air rushes against my face. It's dark out, the only light coming through the windows of the train station and if I squint against the light I can make out tiny snow flurries. I wrap my coat around me tighter. I step off the platform and hear the crunch of the snow beneath my feet. Another gust of wind blows past, sending a shiver down my spine.

Pair of arms wraps around my shoulders and I look up to see Peeta, his face illuminated by the dim light of the station. His cheeks are rosy and his nose is red from the cold. And even when I can tell I'm grimacing from the crisp wind, he still smiles. I lean into his warmth as he rubs my arms. He feels like he has a heater tucked underneath his coat. On the other side of me Gale has his arms wrapped around Madge as she shivers, a small smile stuck on her face.

Ms. Trinket stands in the snow, her pink leather boots with fur around the edges, inches deep in snow. I groan as I notice the bullhorn in her hand. She walks around the growing group of students as they file out of the train. The whole area is consumed with the sound of teeth chattering and I'm sure mine are among them. It doesn't even get this cold at home. It snows but this...this is torture.

Once the students are all out, Effie walks to the front of the group, arms crossed to warm herself then she shakily brings the bullhorn to her mouth. "Good evening, students." She says through her chattering teeth. "As you can tell, it will be snowing for most of our stay so it is essential to wear warm clothes while outside and it is crucial to have a walking buddy. Wouldn't want anybody walking into oblivion, now would we?" Everyone just stares at her. Her joke was definitely not necessary...if you could even call it a joke.

She clears her throat before she continues, "Since it would be overly expensive to rent cars to haul all of you around, he will be walking to the hotel." There's a collective groan from the group at her announcement. They could take us on one of the fanciest trains in the country but they can't get a few cars to rent.

As if to reinforce how horrible the walk will be, the snow starts falling heavier as the wind picks up which cause a particularly violent shiver to run through my body. Peeta pulls me closer to him and I smile up at him gratefully.

"Now, now. It won't be that bad." Effie continues. "The walk should only take about 15 minutes. It's just right up there on that hill." She says as she turns around and points behind her. I have to squint again to see through the thick snow. My gaze follows the direction of her finger to see a faint glow in the distance which I'm assuming is the hotel. And it looks like the empty road from the station leads right up to it. It looks a lot further than 15 minutes. This is just great. "Now come on. You all must be exhausted!" She squeals.

We all start trudging through the snow, Peeta's arms still around me. From my left I can hear Gale grumbling to Madge about "the stupid, freezing wind." If I wasn't freezing as well I probably would have laughed at him. He sounds like a child that got his favorite toy taken away.

Just a little ways away from the station is a small diner and a few tourist shops. They all appear closed for the night...or maybe indefinitely. It took me a minute but I finally made out the name of the diner. Its old rusted letters on the side of the building spelling out 'The Hob'. If it is closed just for the night, we might have to try it while we're here. It may look a little run down but it looks promising...kind of.

* * *

Effie was right. It only took about 15 minutes to get here, even if it was a pain walking through the snow. Once we reached the top of the hill, the bright red, glowing letters looked like a beckon for passerbyers. 'The Capitol Hotel' sticking out like a sore thumb against the black sky and falling snow. If it weren't for the giant sign, the building might have had an appeasing look to it.

The outside walls are a nice tan color with cobblestone surrounding the bottom just below the windows. Many shrubs and bushes are perfectly places to frame the building. Small pine trees line the walkway to the front double doors that are spilling out light, creating a rectangular pattern on the snow.

I can already feel the heat hit my face as the students enter the building. I small smile creeps onto my lips at the sudden warmth. Once we are inside, Peeta's arms slip from my shoulders and my smile threatens to drop. I miss his extra heat already. He bumps his shoulder into mine and I look up at him questioningly. He just smiles at me and nods his head towards the room in front of us.

My jaw almost drops to the floor as I look around. The walls inside match the ones outside; a warm tan color. On the walls to our side lies two plush red couches and a dark wooden coffee table in between them, a stack of newspapers neatly placed in the middle. Even the carpet looks fancy, a darker shade of the tan with a diamond pattern running along it. My eyes travel directly in front of me to the reception desks. Women in fancy red uniforms stand behind them, wide grins taking up their whole face.

But the real beauty of the room is above. A giant chandelier hangs, dozens of tiny crystals glowing a faint golden color. It cast tiny patterns of light across the ceiling and walls. I usually can't stand things that shimmer but I can't deny how beautiful it is. I look over at Peeta to find him staring at the chandelier in amazement, a goofy grin on his face. I can't help but chuckle at how awe-struck he looks. At the sound of my laugh his head jerks down to look at me with a sheepish smile.

Gale seemed to notice Peeta's expression as well because now he's at his side, smacking him on the back. "Do you always get mesmerized by shiny things, Baker Boy?" He says teasingly. "If I had known I would have picked up some spoons to entertain you on the train ride." Peeta just punches his shoulder and chuckles. Madge tries to hide a grin as she stands slightly behind Gale, her curls frizzy from the wind.

And once again, Effie is back but minus the bullhorn. She walks to the reception desk and speaks to one of the attendants.  
"Where do you think she keeps the bullhorn?" I whisper to Peeta.

"Probably the wig." He whispers back. I snort at his comment and my cheek heat up in embarrassment. Peeta just chuckles softly as I try to hide my pink face.

"Alright," Effie begins as she turns back to us, "the right wing is where the girls will go while the boys will have the left wing. The owner, Mr. Abernathy, is currently...retired for the night, but tomorrow he will speak to everyone about the rules he has while we stay here. So for tonight, just use your better judgment and don't break anything."

There are a few murmurs of understanding before she continues. "Now I assume you all have your roommates chosen. Am I correct?" She ask. Everyone nods in agreement and she gives a satisfied nod. "Good. Now it's time to get your room cards. The boys will line up, single file, at the left desk and girls go to the right. Once you're all done just come see me. I'll be standing in the corner with the teachers." She says as everyone starts to line up. I turn around to the group of teachers huddled in the corner. Huh, I didn't notice them before. I guess that would be horrible of the school to send a bunch of high schoolers to a hotel without supervision.  
My attention is brought back to the line forming in front of me when Madge starts pulling me forward.  
"Oh, sorry." I tell her.

"That's okay. I just really, really have to go to the bathroom." She says as she does a little dance then waves at someone. I turn my head to the direction of her wave to see Gale and Peeta already next in line at the boy's line. Dang, they're good.

I watch as they get their door keys. The attendant is obviously flirting with them, twirling her hair and giggling at everything that comes out of their mouth. And, much to my surprise, I find myself growing angry as I watch them, my fists clenching at my sides. For some reason, I don't like watching the attendant and Peeta converse so easily. I shake my head to clear it. Now is not really the time to sort through why that makes me mad.

After a few minutes they part, cards in hand and walk over to Effie. She checks their card and waves them off. They walk over to Madge and I. "Unfortunately, Ms. Nuts over there," Gale says as he gestures to Effie, "won't let us wait for you guys. We have to 'go straight to the room'. He says in mock of Effie's squeal as he rolls his gray eyes.

"Okay, well I guess we'll see ya later?" Madge asks hopefully.

"Yep. She said we just have to 'settle in' but after that we can leave because...well we have to eat dinner." Gale says.

"Oh thank gosh! I'm starving!" She exclaims, rubbing her stomach for show.

"Me too!"

"Gale, you're always starving." I say.

"I am not." He mumbles while me and Peeta laugh. "Yeah, so we'll see you guys later. Come on Baker Boy." He says as he pushes past Peeta and starts walking to the left wing.

The line starts moving and Madge moves forward but I stand in place, Peeta in front of me. He leans in, his lips close to my ear. "See you later, Katniss." He whispers before he places a kiss on my cheek. It's not unusual for Peeta to kiss my cheek. It's been a habit of his since we were little but it never fails to bring a blush to my face.

"Okay, see ya." I whisper back. He smiles, his blond curls falling in his eyes. He turns around and jogs to catch up to Gale, leaving me staring after him.

"Are you gonna move, Lover girl?" Says a snarky voice from behind me. I jerk around to see a girl with short, spikey brown hair glaring at me.

"Johanna, be nice." Says the girl next to her that I recognize as Annie Cresta, Finnick's girlfriend.

"Why should I be nice? She's holding up the line." She spits at me. I'm about to spit something back at her when Madge shows up at my side and hauls me up to the front. I hadn't even realized it was our turn. The attendant gives us our keys and as we turn around Johanna is still glaring at me. I glare right back as we pass her. She had no right to get mad. So she had to wait a minute. Big deal.

After we see Effie, who did a quick check of our keys then dismissed us; me and Madge walk down the right wing of the building and find our room all the way at the end of the hall. Before we found it though, we did some exploring. Right at the corridor of the hallway full of rooms it splits off into another hall. It's shorter and me and Madge decided to take a peak. It contained a small break room with a couple of tables and a vending machine. Across from it was a wooden door with the words 'Ball Room' engraved on the metal plate in the middle of the door.

Madge practically runs to the bathroom as soon as we enter our room and I can't help but laugh. When ya gotta go, ya gotta go. We spend the next half hour freshening up before we decide to head for dinner. _Thankfully_. Peeta's cheese bun was wearing off. We enter the lobby and find a sign for the dining room pointing to the left wing where the boys rooms are. Just like the right wing, the hallway splits in two and where the Ball Room is in ours, the dining room is in its spot.

"Oh, I forgot my phone in the room." I say just before we enter the dining room.

"Do you want me to go back with you?" Madge asks.

"No I can get it. I'll be back in a minute." I tell her as I start walking toward our room.

I find my phone sitting on my bed, right where I left it and tuck it in the back pocket of my pants. I walk back to the dining room and right when I'm about to push the door open someone yanks me by the arm and pulls me into the break room across the hall. I automatically know who it is by the broad shoulders and straight blond hair.

Cato turns around and faces me, a mischievous grin on his face. Without my permission I back myself into the corner if the room, almost tripping on the leg of a chair. I mentally curse myself for letting my fear show. He comes to stand right in front of me, his face just inches from mine.

"What do you want, Cato?" I ask, my voice coming out stronger than I thought it would. His hand trails down my arm. When I try to shake it off he grabs the top of my arm and slams it into the wall. It takes every ounce of my will not to groan in pain.  
"I saw you with Mellark earlier on the train. What did I tell you about showing affection for other men? You just don't learn, do you?" He says harshly, causing me to flinch.

"You know Peeta and I are just friends. I'm sorry." I say through gritted teeth.  
"You think an apology is enough?" He laughs coldly. "Then you're mistaken. Meet me he

re tomorrow night, midnight. Then you can see what enough is." He hisses as he pushes me into the wall. His hand trails along the side of my face then down my jaw. I have to bite my tongue to keep from spitting in his face or punching him. I close my eyes and think of Prim. I can't do any of that and he knows it.

I open my eyes to see him smirking at me. He leans in close again, his lips almost touching mine. "See ya later." He whispers before he pulls away and exits the room, leaving me staring at the door as it swings closed.


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4

I don't know how long I stand there, staring at the door, before I get my feet to move. I tumble into a chair as I try to process everything that just happened. I knew I shouldn't have touched Peeta! How could I have been so stupid? At least I can be thankful he never saw him kiss my cheek. I shudder at the thought of what he would do if he saw that.

I need to pull myself together so I can go to dinner. I know if I don't show up soon Madge will come looking for me. Then Peeta and Gale. I really don't want them to see me like this. I can't believe I let this happen. How can one boy cause me so much fear? I can challenge a bear to a bee hive but I can't stand against a high school kid. How pathetic.

I pull up my sleeve and, sure enough, a bruise is forming from where he shoved my arm into the wall. A hiss escapes my lips as I press on the tender area. I pull my sleeve back down and slump against the chair. Tomorrow is going to be hell.

And just like that, the revelation of what's going to happen tomorrow hits me like a ton of bricks. Like the air has just been sucked from my lungs. I gasp trying to regain my breath. I can't do this. I can't. But I have to. I can't let this happen to Prim. If Prim will be safe then I'll take a thousand cuts and bruises from him... or whatever else he has in mind.

A sudden wave of nausea rushes through me at the thought. It's not beneath Cato to go into that territory. Whenever he gets the chance, whenever he gets me alone, he hands don't always stick to my face. I never have despise him more than in those moments. And if he's as mad about this as he seems he could go even further.

How could I have let this happen? I can't do this! I bury my face in my hands and scream in frustration. I hate this and hate him! Why does it have to be me that he chose for his sick game? I can feel the tears begin to build in my eyes but I refuse to let them fall. Whether they are from frustration of hopelessness, I can't tell. All I know is there's no other option than to go see him tomorrow night.

I take a moment to let myself calm down before I stand up on shaky legs. I feel disgusted with myself for letting him do this to me. I should never be this weak. Pushing those thoughts aside, I can think about them tonight in the privacy of my bed, I walk over to the door and push it open.

I cross the hall to the dining room. Wiping the sweat off my hands on my jeans, I take a deep breath and push open the door. Automatically, the sound of talking and laughing fills my ears. It's loud and boisterous, so completely different from the utter silence that was filling the break room.

I scan the large room. There has to be at least fifty tables in here and not one is empty. I sigh as I start walking around to try and find Peeta, Gale and Madge. It takes a few minutes but once I find them I quickly realize they aren't the only ones at the table. Finnick, Annie, Johanna, Delly and two other people I don't recognize are all crowded around the table, talking.

I take the only empty seat- next to Peeta- and eye the rest of the group warily.

"You're finally here! I thought we might have to get a search party for you." Gale jokes from his seat directly across from me. Madge is sitting to his left, across from Peeta and a darker skinned boy is seated to his right.

"Well I'm here." I say but my voice shakes, the emotions from earlier still present. I cough to try and cover it up but I can tell from the look on Gale and Peeta's face that they noticed. Peeta's reaches over and takes my hand in his. I almost pull it out, thinking that Cato might see but I haven't seen him around. Plus, he's holding them under the table so I doubt he would notice anyway. I don't want to pull it out. I want the comfort of my best friend.

I look up at Peeta to see his blue eyes filled with concern. I try to give him a reassuring smile but I'm positive it didn't do any reassuring. If anything the concern grew on his face. I give him a pleading look, hoping he won't ask about it and he doesn't. After watching me for another moment he slowly turns his attention back to the conversation consuming the large group. I decide it's probably best if I try to pay attention rather than zoning out so, I follow his lead.

"-yeah, but why bother with that when there are so many other interesting things to do." Johanna says to Gale.

"Like what? Slumber parties?" he says sarcastically.

"No." she snaps back, "haven't you heard of 'having a life'?"

"Yes, and I'm sure I have more of a life than you do. You probably attack everyone you meet within the first 48 hours."

"And you're next!" she hisses to which Gale just scoffs.

"Whatever, Johanna. You're just jealous because you suck at video game. I bet you couldn't even figue out how to use a gun." he says.

She narrows her eyes at him. "First of all, why would I want to? And second of all, I don't need a video game to use a gun."

"Oh, that's right... You're an ex-convict." Gale says smugly as he leans back in his chair.

"Watch it, Howthorne. And it was Juve. That's different." she retorts.

"Barely." he mutters.

Johanna leans over the table to get closer. "Do you want to test that theory, Howthorne?" she says in a deadly whisper.

Before Gale can respond, Finnick jumps in. "So Katniss... you're probably wondering what we're all doing here, right?" he asks cheerfully, his hand latched on to Annie's.

"Umm...yes?" I meant for that to be a statement but it came out more as a question.

"Well, we thought this would be a great opportunity to get to know each other." he says gesturing to everyone with large movements. "That large guy over there," he says as he points to the dark skinned man sitting next to Gale, "is Thresh. Don't let his size intimidate you...he's a good guy."

I look over at Thresh who gives me a small smile that I try to return.

"You look really familiar." I tell Thresh as I eye him.

"That's probably because we're neighbors and our sister hangout all the time." He says.

"Oh, yeah. Your sister's name is Rue, right?" I ask.

"Yeah."

I suddenly feel bad for not recognizing him. Rue and Prim have been friends for years now. "Sorry." I mutter.

"It's okay. It took me awhile to figure out who you were as well." he says with a playful grin. That makes me feel a little better...

"And you already know Annie, Johanna, Delly... and Gale, Peeta and Madge obviously. And of course yours truly." Finnick says the last part seductively as he gives me a sly grin. It makes me so uncomfortable, I squirm in my seat.

"So that leaves us with Rosalind." Finnick continues as he points to the girl sitting at the end of the table. Her hair is a bright red, her face almost reminds me of a fox. She waves at me and I wave back. "You can just call me Rosy." she says and I nod.

"So that's everybody and now we can eat since we are all properly introduced." Finnick says as he runs his hands together, his eyes hungrily scanning over his plate. I look down to find a plate full of food in front of me. I hadn't even realized it before. It looks like potatoes, steak and peas. Not bad. I use my empty hand, the one unoccupied by Peeta's, and take a bite of the potatoes. They are delicious.

"Look, it's Dumb and Dumber." Johanna says with her mouth full of steak as she nods to a blond couple sitting at the table next to ours.

"Johanna. That's rude." Delly chimes in, her voice squeaky, earning her an eye roll from Johanna.

"It's true. Glimmer and Marvel have to be the stupidest brother, sister pair there is." she says.

"I don't think I've ever seen her without a tube of lip gloss in her hand." Annie adds quietly.

"Exactly. Stupid." Johanna agrees, causing Delly to huff in frustration.

"So which one is Dumb and which is Dumber?" Threah asks.

"Easy. Marvel is Dumb and Glimmer is Dumber." Johanna answers with a smirk. Thresh nods in agreement as he eyes them.

"I once heard that Glimmer forgot her lip gloss one day and she had a complete mental breakdown in girl's bathroom." Rosalind says.

"Oh, nobody is that weird." Annie says.

"Don't be so sure, Annie. Glimmer has about the amount of brain power as a gold fish. I wouldn't be surprised if she did have a breakdown." Johanna snorts.

"But over lip gloss?" Rosalind asks.

"Why not? That tube of lip gloss is like her life line. Plain and simple."

"I will never understand you girls and your need for a ton of makeup." Finnick says.

"I know! It's like some obsession they all have." Gale says as he rolls his eyes.

"There's nothing wrong with wanton to look pretty." Delly squeaks as she lifts her head from her plate of food.

"I didn't say there was but girls just seem to go overboard. Like 'chill out on the eyeliner! Your making yourself look like you just got punched I the eye.' Am I right?" Finnick asks Gale who fervently nods in agreement.

"Katniss doesn't wear makeup." Madge pipes in for the first time. All three boys turn to me, their eyes scanning my face. I start to squirm, nervous of them staring at me. Peeta gives my hand a light squeeze under the table and I relax a little.

"No, it looks like she doesn't." Finnick says, his eyes still trained in me. In this situation, I'm not really sure it that's a bad thing or a good thing. All I know is that I have always and will always hate makeup.

"She doesn't need makeup anyway." Thresh says and the boys nod in agreement. I can feel my face heating up so I decide the peas look rather appetizing right now.

After a while, when the boys have moved on to other topics, I look up, my eyes scan the room again and my stomach clenches when my eyes land on Cato's at the table a few rows over. He smirks at me before turning his attention to his food. His table partner is a girl with black hair. I think her name is Clove. I quickly turn back around in my seat, my hand clenching Peeta's harder even though I should probably be ripping it from mine. But I can't find the will to do it so grip his hand tighter.

I can feel Peeta watching me but I don't dare look up. Who knows what my face looks like and the last thing I need is for Peeta to get involved. I had almost forgot about my 'meeting' for a moment there. That was stupid of me. There's no way I will be able to truly forget about it. It was a nice distraction while it lasted though.

Now that I know Cato is there, I can't relax. It's like I can feel his eyes burning holes into the back of my head. I still keep hold of Peeta's hand though. I know from his point of view he can't see it. So no harm no foul, right?

* * *

After dinner, which I mostly just picked at, Peeta and Gale walk Madge and I to our room. Most everybody else dispersed once the last crumb was licked off their plate. Most of them went to bed, exhausted from the long day on the train. I dread going to sleep. More vision of my father dying is all that waits for me once my head hits the pillow. I'm positive of that. And now poor Madge is going to have to deal with it.

We all stand outside our door, Madge's hand on the knob ready to open it. "It's finally bedtime. Thank gosh, I am so tired." Madge says with a yawn.

"I know, it's gotta be like 11:30. And my butt still hurts from sitting on the train all day." Gale groans.

"I know what ya mean. Well, we'll see ya all tomorrow for breakfast." she says as she opens the door.

"Okay. Goodnight, Madge. Night, Katniss." Gale says with a lazy wave as he turns around and starts walking towards their room.

"Goodnight." me and Madge call out at the same time. She watches me for a minute before she shakes her head, as of to clear it, and walks into the room, closing the door behind her with a click. I keep my eyes on the door, not wanting to face Peeta yet. I know he's going to ask me why happened and I know I won't have answers.

He gently grabs my wrist, coaxing me to look at him. But I can't. My eyes move from the door to my shoes.

"Katniss," he says softly. "please look at me." I slowly life my eyes to meet his, the concern evident. My eyes dart make to my shoes in guilt. I don't want to see him concerned for me. He slowly brings his hand up to my chin, gently lifting it to look at him.

"Katniss, what's wrong?" he asks.

"Nothing." I mumble, being sure to avoid eye contact.

"That's not true, I can tell. And you're a horrible liar."

He is making this so hard for me not to just break down and tell him. But I can't, I have to think of Prim. "There's nothing wrong." I say quietly.

"You know you can tell me anything, right?" I think about it for a moment. Can I really tell him anything? No. I can't tell him this.

"I know." I say, my voice a whisper.

"Then please tell me what's wrong."

"There's nothing to tell." I say.

"Katniss," he pleads. My eyes dart to his face when I hear the hurt in his voice. I almost break right there. His eyes drop to the floor, defeated. His hand falling from my chin to his side. He knows something is wrong and he knows I won't tell him.

I almost start crying. For what reason, I'm not sure. Maybe because I know I'm hurting Peeta. Maybe because I'm scared for Prim. Maybe because I'm scared to tomorrow night. I don't know but I do know I can't let Peeta see me cry. That would just make everything worse.

He looks up as he takes a step closer. hi hand rising again but this time to cup my cheek. It takes every once of my will not to fling myself into his arms, to cry into his shoulder while he comforts me.

I take a step closer so that our bodies are now almost touching. I have to reassure Peeta that I'm okay. Or at least as okay as I can be for now. But I don't know how. His eyes stare into mine with such intensity. The blue so bright against the dim light in the hall.

And suddenly, I panic. I pull away from Peeta's hand, bumping into the door as I back away. He just stares at me, confusion etched all over his face. I try to give him a smile but I really have no idea how it turned out. I reach behind me for the doorknob. Soon my hand feels the cool metal and I turn it open, almost stumbling as I back inside.

"Uh... Goodnight, Peeta." I say hastily.

"Goodnight..." he trails off as he watches me. I'm probably scaring the crap out of him with the way I'm acting. I give him a small wave right before I close the door, leaving him standing in the hallway, a bewildered expression on his face.

I groan and hit my head against the door.

"What was that all about?" Madge asks from behind me, causing me to jump. I whirl around to face her, her hair wrapped up in a towel, already dresses in her pjs. She looks at me expectantly, a concerned look on her face.

"What- nothing." I say quickly. I dart around her, over to my suitcase and grab my night clothes and my toiletries. I can feel her eyes watching me but I refuse to meet them. I must look insane...I feel insane.

I move to the bathroom and lock the door behind me. I slid to the floor, my face in my hands as a thousand thoughts race through my mind, causing my head to hurt. I groan again and push myself to my feet. I can't say in here to long or Madge will start to worry. So I take a quick shower, change my clothes, brush my teeth and exit the bathroom. Not even the warm water of the shower could calm me.

When I exit, I see Madge already in her bed but still awake. I cross to the bed next to hers and slide under the covers. I can see Madge wants to ask me something but he bits her lip and turns over, her back to me. I mentally sigh in relief; I really don't want to talk about it. Whatever it is.

Instead, I reach over and turn the lamp off, to confused and scared to even think about warning Madge of my nightmares. I can barely concentrate as it is with so many questions in my head practically screaming at me. I pull the covers over my head in an atrempt to block out the noise even though it's in my head.

And I'm scared.

Not for tomorrow night, not for Prim's safety or my own. But because standing in the hallway, Peeta in front of me, his hand my cheek, his blue eyes staring into mine... I have never wanted to kiss someone so badly in my entire life.


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5

It's almost seven in the morning. I'm sure I'll have to get up soon but I'm exhausted. I was barely able to sleep last night, constantly tossing and turning. And the one time I finally feel asleep, much was only around 40 minutes, I woke up screaming from a nightmare. It woke up Madge and she jumped out of bed thinking someone broke into our room. I had to explain to her at 3 in the morning about my nightmares. That was a nice binding moment.

I explained how every time I fall asleep I wake up screaming for my dad and at that point she mentioned how I didn't wake up screaming on the train when I was with Peeta. I quickly dropped the subject then and told her she should go back to sleep.

I fiddle with the white down feather comforter in my hand, folding in then smoothing it out before folding it again. My eyes are drooping but I can't sleep no matter how hard I try. And it doesn't help that the sun is rising, lighting up the room in a soft glow. I turn my head to the side. Madge is hurried under a pile of blankets sleeping soundly. At home I didn't mind if I lost sleep. A loss of sleep meant a loss of nightmares. But I know that here, with Gale, Madge and Peeta they will all try to ask questions.

I cringe as Peeta's name enters my mind. He's the cause for my lack of sleep. Not that I'm blaming him, it's my fault that I had to go and have those thoughts. A person is not supposed to think about kissing their best friend. That's just wrong and not natural. And I've known Peeta since we were seven. Why did my brain choose now, at of all these years, to go throwing those thoughts around.

I swore off any relationships or marriage every since my father died and I'm not about to go back on that. I saw what it did to my mother. She was completely broken and she hasn't been repaired since. I'm not about to let that happen to me. It was probably just some fluke thought anyway. I'm positive it didn't mean anything. Peeta is like a brother to me. He's my best friend. Nothing more, nothing less.  
A knock on the door shakes me from my thoughts. "Up, up, up! It's going to be a big, big, big day!" The muffled voice of Effie shouts through the door.

Madge groans from under her comforter. "Five more minutes..." she mumbles.

I toss my blankets off and sit up. My neck aches and I still have a slight headache from last night. I let out my own groan as I stand up and stretch my back. I grab my clothes and pad over to the bathroom. I take a quick shower, brush my teeth then braid my hair down my back.

When I exit the bathroom I see Madge sitting on her freshly made bed, crisscrossed. She looks up from her phone and gives me smile. "Take just texted me. He said he and Peeta want to meet us for breakfast in a half hour." She says.

I try not to cringe at Peeta's name. If it was up to me, I would probably try to avoid seeing Peeta. But I know I can't do that without drawing questions from Gale and Madge. I think back to last night. How I basically closed the door on his face after I had my freak out moment. I mentally groan. This is going to be horrible.

I must have been thinking for too long because Madge is looking at me funny. "Okay, then you should probably hurry if you want to meet them on time." I tell her casually. She seems satisfied but the next think I know, she jumping off the bed and racing to the bathroom.  
I pick up my phone from my nightstand to see three missed calls from Prim. Shoot. I forgot to call her last night. She's probably worry that the train crashed or something. I check the clock. She's already at school so I'll have to call her tonight. I suddenly feel nauseous as I remember what's going to happen tonight.

* * *

When me and Madge make it to the dining room for breakfast Peeta and Gale are already seated at the same table we used last night, minus the other students. Madge quickly takes a seat next to Gale, leaving me with the seat by Peeta. I slid onto the chair, avoiding his gaze.

"I'm pretty sure I haven't slept that good in my life. My bed was like sleeping on a cloud." Gale says as he shovels a spoonful of eggs in his mouth.

"Oh, I know. It was super comfy." Madge says.

"What about you Baker Boy?"

"Yeah, I slept pretty well." Peeta answers with a shrug. I look up at him to see him already looking at me. I blush and quickly look away. I just have to make everything worse.

We eat in silence for the rest of the meal, everyone to busy stuffing food in their face. Eggs, toast and pancakes. Throughout the meal, more and more kids pile into the dining room until its completely full. Our guests from last night stop by quickly to say hi before they sit at their own table.

As soon as everyone is finishing up Effie enter the room, bullhorn in hand. You could hear the whole room groan as they notice. She has blue wig on today to match her teal suit. She looks absolutely ridiculous; like a giant blueberry. "Good morning, students!" She says through the bullhorn as a somewhat haggard man walks up beside her, beer bottle in hand. He looks like he hasn't shaved in a few days, his dark hair ruffled and matted. His gray eyes look distant but sharp as he scans over the crowd of student. "This is Mr. Abernathy." Effie continues as she gestures to the man. "He is the co-owner of the hotel so he has a few rules he would like to go over with you. Be polite."

She steps to the side and hands Mr. Abernathy the bullhorn. He looks at like it's an alien before shoving it back to Effie. "First, call me Haymitch." He slurs, no doubt drunk. "And second...the rules. One: No running on the halls. This is not a zoo. It's a hotel and I don't need a stampede of students running through the halls." He pauses to belch at which Effie looks absolutely horrified, causing a few chuckles throughout the room.

"Two: no staying out past 11. You kids need for beauty rest." He says in a snarky tone with a smirk. "And three: you break it, you buy it...or pay for it. So don't break anything." And with that he pushes past Effie and stumbles out the door. Effie watches him go, completely baffled before she turns back to us.

"Uh... well, there you go. I would also like to say we are going to be having a dance while we are here!" Most of the students whistle and cheer and that but I just try to suppress grumbling. I hate dancing. "It will be held in Wednesday of next week. Now I know we didn't tell you about this beforehand so you probably didn't pack any of proper attire but don't worry. We had a very, very generous donation from one of the residents in town that the teachers and I thought we would use for this occasion. One of the shops downtown, The Mockingjay I believe, will be handling your clothing. So, sometime before Wednesday, go and get dress or suite. You are dismissed now. You guys can go and have fun today. Go out and explore or stay inside. But if you go out, don't forget your walking buddy!" She yells through the bullhorn before she turns on her heals and follows Haymitch out the door.

I turn back around in my seat to see Gale trying to hold in a laugh. "What's wrong with you?" Peeta asks him.

"Did you see Effie's face? She looked completely at a loss with Haymitch. Then when he burped she looked like she was about to puke." Gale says as he burst out laughing. Peeta just shakes his head in amusement.

"Are you guys going to the dance?" Madge asks us.

"I don't know. Maybe if I can find a date." Gale says.

"Yeah same here." Peeta says as he glances at me.

"What about you, Katniss." Madge asks.

"Probably not. I hate dancing." I say sharply.

"What I went with you. I'm sure I won't find a date so we could go as buddies." she says hopefully.

I decide to humor her, even though I know won't go. "I'll think about it."

-•••-

"Should we go in here?" Madge asks in a whisper, like if she talks any louder, she might get caught doing something wrong.

After Effie and Haymitch's appearence, Finnick and Thresh sauntered over to our table to invite Peeta and Gale to play football with them outside. Madge said they were crazy and I couldn't agree more. There three feet of snow outside and it's freezing. Finnick just said that makes it even more of a challenge. So after the boys left me and Madge decided to do some exploring around the building.

"Sure." I answer with a small shrug. Madge practically squeals with excitement as she pushes open the Ball Room door. I really don't see the thrill she sees in this. We walk inside, quietly shutting the door behind us. The room is completely black inside. I run my hand along the wall, feeling for the light switch. Once I find it, I flick it on and the room illuminates in a soft glow.

I hear Madge gasp from beside me as we take in the elegance if the room. The room is giant, the walls are a deep red, complementing the two chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. They look similar to the one in the lobby just larger. They cast the same tiny light pattern across the walls. In the very back of the room is a stage for bands to play on.

When Marge's eyes land on the grand piano, her whole face lights up and she literally runs to it. She clumsily climbs the steps from her excitement. She stops once she is right in front of it. Her eyes are wide as she examines the piano. Her fingers ghost over the black and white keys.

"Don't you think I would get in trouble if I played it?" She asks me as I join her on stage, her eyes never leaving the giant instrument.  
"Only if we get caught. But I'm sure this room is probably sound proof anyway." I tell her. She looks up with a goofy grin and nods. She slides onto the stool and I lean against the piano as I watch her gingerly places her fingers on the keys. In no time, she's expertly playing complete songs, mostly classical. I close my eyes as I let the sound fill me ears. After everything that's happened since we arrived here it's nice to just relax.

It's a welcome distracted to the thoughts of tonight that keep creeping back into my mind every five minutes. I haven't seen Cato today but I know he will be waiting for me, just like he said. I open my eyes when I hear the finishing notes of the song. The sound slowly fades away and Madge looks up at me.

"You play incredibly." I tell her.

"My mother taught me. I can't really play that much at home, because it hurts when she has her headaches. But when I do get to play I enjoy it so much." She says whimsically.

"Well you certainly have a talent for it."

She pats the spot next to her in the stool and I slide in heft to her.

"You should sing." She tells me.

"No. You know I don't sing, Madge." I tell her sternly.

"Don't you think it's time you start doing the things you love again? You deserve to happy, Katniss."

"I'm happy. I have you and Peeta and Gale."

"I know and I'm gale we make you happy but you were so much happier...before." she says cautiously.

"You mean before my father died?" I ask, already knowing the answer.

"Katniss, I know that your father's death was horrible. Of course it was, but he wouldn't want to to give up the things you love." She says softly.

"You know I didn't give them up. It hurts to much. It's too much of a reminder." I'm coming extremely close to tears now. The hollow feeling that I always get when I think of my father returns.

"Which is exactly why you should sing. If you don't do it for yourself, do it for your father. He loved it when you sung."  
"But he can't hear me anymore, Madge! He's dead." I can feel the tears falling down my cheeks but I don't bother wiping them off. I know new ones will just take their place. Madge places her arm around my shoulder.

"I know. But don't you want to live your life knowing that you did it in your fathers honor? That you made him proud even if he isn't here?"  
More tears fall from my eyes, my chest clenches. I just can't do it. The pain is too much. And I know Madge is right but I'm selfish and I won't do it. I just want my father back. I want him here, holding me and reassuring me that everything will be aright. I want to his smile and hear his laugh. At least once.

* * *

"You guys missed lun- what happened?" Madge asks with a snicker. Gale and Peeta stand in front of us, completely covered in snow. They're shivering, arms crossed against their chest as they try to warm up. Madge got a text from Gale after lunch telling us to meet them in the lobby.

"We played football in the snow." Gale says through chattering teeth. Me and Madge crack up.

"Yeah, Gale decided he wanted to tackle everyone once they got into the really deep snow." Peeta says.

"Well I couldn't just let Finnick get all the tackles."

"Oh, of course. Wouldn't want to do that." Peeta says sarcastically.

"No we would not, Baker Boy."

"Well who won?" I ask.

"Finnick and Thresh won. By three points." Gale says with a grumble. "We would have won if Peeta hasn't tripped."

"It wasn't my fault the snow was deep. And you know I'm not the best on my feet."

Me and Gale crack up, remember when we tried to take Peeta hunting with us but he just ended scaring the animals away, either from tripping or just being loud. We decided it was best if he just sat back for tw hunting trips.

"So why did you want to meet us here? Don't you guys wanna take a shower or something? You must be cold." Madge says.

"Freezing. But we wanted to meet up with you guys to ask if you wanted to meet us for dinner." Gale says.

"Did you really have to ask us that? I think that was already a given." I say with a chuckle as I walk to stand beside Peeta.

The snow is melting in his hair and dripping to the floor, his cheeks flushed from the cold. They both look rediculous. I take my arm and hook it around Peeta's, pulling him closer to help warm him up. He smiles down at me gratefully.

"We just wanted to make sure. Rather safe than sorry, right?" Gale says.

"Yeah, I suppose." I answer.

"Okay, well I'm going to go take a shower. See ya guys at dinner." he says as he starts jogging back to his room.

"Well..." Madge starts as she stares at me and Peeta. "Im gonna go...to the bathroom so...I'll see ya guys in a while." she says as she tries to hide a small smirk. She quickly turns on her heels and takes off towards our room.

I look up to Peeta to see him just as confused as I am. "What was that all about?" he asks.

I shake my head. "I have no idea." I say as I lead him to one of the red couches in the corner. I sit down but Peeta says standing.

"I don't want to get the couch wet." he says sheepishly.

I can't help but snort at that. Leave it to Peeta to worry about the couches. I tug on his shirt sleeve. "It'll be fine, Peeta. It'll dry...eventually." I tell him.

He watches me warily. I huff at him and yank his arm down. He plops onto the couch, his eyes wide in shock which causes me to laugh.

"Don't worry about the couch, Peeta."

"Okay." he says as he watches me. All the sudden the memories of last night, which I had been able to cleverly avoid, come rushing back. His eyes hold the same intensity as they did last night and all the sudden my heart feels like it does a little flip-flop in my chest. Crap.

"You look tired." Peeta tells me. "Did you sleep good?"

My mind rushes for an excuse. "Yeah, the bed was just a little to firm." Wow, great excuse, Katniss, I mentally scold. Peeta obviously didn't buy it but he doesn't say anything. Instead, he grabs me around the waist and pulls me close to him. I let out a small yelp of surprise. He chuckles and wraps his arms around my shoulders.

"Peeta, you're wet." I protest, but don't try to push him away.

"Don't worry, you'll dry...eventually." he says with a smirk. "Plus, I'm cold."

I wrap my arms around his waist, his coat soaking wet from the melting snow, and lean into his chest. I don't see how he can be cold, he feels warm to me. "Better?" I ask him.

"Much." he says softly, the intensity never leaving his eyes. I can tell by the way he's biting his lip he wants to ask me questions about yesterday. I sigh. Might as well get this over with.

"Yes, Peeta?"

He hesitates. "I just want to know you're alright, Katniss." he says softly, his eyes staring into mine.

"I'm fine. Really. You don't have to worry about me."

"I know I don't _have_ to, but I do."

"Well don't. I really will be fine." I say in an assuring tone, hoping he didn't notice the slight quiver at the end. His hand moves up to brush a stray lock of hair behind my ear, his fingers trailing along my cheek before it drops to his lap, leaving a tingling sensation where is fingers were.

I move my hand up and, using my thumb, I brush away a water drop that was forming on his temple from the melting snow then move my hand to cup his cheek.

"I really will be fine. Trust me." I whisper.

He nods and moves his hand up to hold mine where it is. I'm not sure how long we stay like that, staring at each other. All I know is that I don't want it to end and that shouldn't be thinking like that. But if I'm being completely honest, I never want this moment to end. But it does.

We are both startled when we hear someone clear their throat from behind us, both our hands drop to our laps. I turn around to see Madge staring at us, mouth open and eyes wind. My phone is in her hand. I can't help but feel angry at her for interrupting us. After a moment she seems to remember why shes here.

"Your phones been ringing for the fifteen minutes. I think it's your sister." she says as she hands me my phone. I grab it and, sure enough, I have seven missed calls from Prim.

"Shoot. I'll be back later, okay? I need to go call Prim." I tell Peeta as I stand up and Peeta follows.

"Okay. Gale is probably out of the shower any way. I'll see you at dinner." he says as he leans in and plants a soft kiss on my cheek. For some reason, I seem to have lost the ability to speak so instead I just nod my head like an idiot. I watch as he walks away, then my phone rings and, once again, I'm startled.

I turn when I hear a snicker to see Madge, hand over her mouth, as she laughs.

"Um...I'm gonna talk to her in the room so I'll see you at dinner?" I ask, she nods.

I run to my room and close the door behind me. I jump on my bed, the comforter wrinkling as I cross my legs. The phone rings again and I answer it on the first ring.

"Hello?" I answer in the receiver.

"Oh my gosh, Katniss! I've called you like thirty times in the last two days! I thought you were hurt or lost or something." prim squeals into the phone.

"No, no I'm fine. Calm down, Little Duck."

"Why didn't you answer my calls? I've called you like twenty times in the past two days!"

"I know I'm sorry. I was just tired last night and I kinda forgot. And I was going to call you later tonight."

"Okay but I was just calling and it took you forever to answer."

"Oh, that was because I left my phone in the room and I was with Peeta."

"Ohhhh...are you guys finally going out now?" he asks casually.

I'm so startled it takes me awhile to answer. "No, we are not going out. What would give you that idea?" I ask, completely baffled.

"Uhh...never mind."

"Peeta and I are just friends. You know that." I say sternly.

"Yeah I know that...now."

"I still don't see what would give you that impression. He's like my brother."

I can hear Prim snort through the phone. "Okay... So moms getting better. She even made dinner tonight." she says, obviously trying to change the subject. I let her, because I really don't want to hear what crazy ideas she has going through her head about me and Peeta.

"I think she's getting better, Katniss."

"Maybe." I say simply. I know it's not true. In a few days she will go right back to her shell.

"So are you having fun?"

"Yeah. I met some new people and there's going to be a dance next week. I haven't been skiing yet but maybe tomorrow." I say as excited as I can get.

"Oh! That sounds like fun!" Prim squeals. "You have to go to the dance! Maybe Peet- or someone will ask you to go."

"Yeah, maybe."

"Well I have to go finish my homework. I wish I could keep talking, though. I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I'm fine. Have fun at school tomorrow." I tell her.

"Okay I will. Have fun in Aspen."

"I will. Goodnight Little Duck."

"Night." and with that I hang up the phone.

* * *

I pause at the door to the break room. Pulling out my phone from my back pocket, I check the time. There's still five minutes until midnight. My hands shake as I push my phone back in pocket. I take a deep breath and, in one swift motion, I open the door.

The room is empty and I sigh in relief. I sit on one of the chairs and wait. My breathing is rapid and no matter how hard I try, I can't keep myself from trembling. I try to clamp my hands together on my lap but it doesn't work. I fiddle with the tip of my braid.

I check my phone again. Just one more minute. I feel nauseous but I can't let it show. I can't let Cato see how scared I am. That will just give him more power over me. And after my conversation with Prim, there was no way I wasn't going to come here.

The minutes seem to drag on forever. It has to be at least five after twelve but he isn't here yet. I feel hope bubbling up inside of me. Maybe he forgot and won't show up.

Then the door creaks open.

My breathing picks up. I keep my face expressionless. Then I see him. Board shoulders, blonde hair. But this hair is curly and there is absolutely no one else on this planet with those amazing blue eyes.

"Peeta?"


	6. Chapter 6

**AN* I hope you guys like fluff because this chapter is full of it. I really, really hope I didn't over do it. I'm always worried about that. every time I write fluff it just seems to cheesy...**

**Anyway, I hope you like the chapter. Please let me know if I need to cut back on the fluff scene. Or really any advice you have, I would love to hear. So...enjoy! :)**

* * *

CHAPTER 6

"Katniss?" Peeta asks, his eyes wide.

"What are you doing here?" I hiss at him. This is not good. It Cato walks in and sees me here with Peeta, the whole reason he's mad at me, then not only will I get hurt but so will Peeta. And I can't let that happen. "You have to go. Now." I tell him as I push on his chest.

"What? Why? What's going on? You look looked terrified when I walked in here and now your mad." He asks as he pulls my hands away.

"Peeta, I really can't explain right now but you have to trust me. You can't be here."

"Why? Tell me what's wrong."

"I can't! Please go!"

He eyes me warily. "I'm not leaving you." He says sternly.

"Don't be an idiot. Just go." I hiss again. He is going to cause a lot of problems if he doesn't listen. I check behind me at the door to make sure Cato isn't here yet. The door stays closed and I sigh in relief before I turn back to Peeta.

"No. You're obviously in some kind of trouble and since you won't tell me what it is, I'm going to stay and find out."

"Please. I don't want you to get hurt." My voice is starting to sound pleading now. Why can't he just leave?

"Katniss why would I get hurt?" his asks, his eyes full of concern but I can tell it's not for himself. Once again Peeta is worried about other people rather than himself. The thought makes me want to cry. I can't stand this. He needs to go. Now. I start pushing on his chest again but he's barely even moving.

"Please. Just go." I plead but the more I say it, the more I want him to stay. I don't want to deal with Cato. But he can't get hurt and neither can Prim. I can feel tears forming in my eyes. My arms go limp and drop to my sides. I can't do this anymore. My eyes stay trained on the tiles as the tears slip from my eyes without permission.

Peeta's arms wrap around me, pulling me to his chest. My arms automatically slide around his waist and I finally let myself breakdown. I bury my face in the chest, my hands gripping the back of his shirt like a life line. He pulls me closer, his warm arms creating a sanctuary that I can hide in. The whole time I cry Peeta doesn't interrupt, just whispers soothing words to me, his breath tickling my ear as he buries his face in my hair.

I let myself cry. I forget about Cato, even though I know if he walks in at this moment it's going to be hell. My hand move to slide around Peeta's neck. I pull my face away from his chest and look into his calming blue eyes. They are still filled with so much concern and something else I can't quite figure out. I lift my hand and run it through his hair, tousling his blonde curls.

Peeta wipes the tears away from my eyes with his thumb, the back of his hand trailing down my cheek. I lean into it, savoring the feeling of his warmth, the odd tingling sensation that is always left with his touch.

Just then the door flies open. I try to jump away from Peeta but his grip just tightens around me. Cato stands in the doorway, his face red from anger. I can feel myself flinch just from his expression as he glares at me. I can feel Peeta's eyes shifting between me and him. His arms pull me impossibly closer to him protectively.

"Can we help you?" Peeta asks calming, breaking the silence.

"What are you doing here, Mellark?" Cato hisses.

"I just came to grab a snack."

"Then get on with it and leave."

"Well I'm not really hungry any more. Me and Katniss decided to go for a walk instead." Peeta lies, causing me to look at him startled. He should know that's not going to work.

"No." Cato barks and I flinch, "I need to speak to Katniss…in private. So you can leave."

"I'm afraid I can't. But you can speak to her now if you'd like." Peeta says calmly.

"If you don't leave, Mellark, I'll make you." Cato says in a deadly whisper, his eyes stone arm, fists clenching at his side.

"Okay, well it looks like you're going to have to make me." Peeta says as he lets go of me, gently moving me behind him, using his body to shield mine. Cato's eyes flicker between me and Peeta. He positions himself, stance ready for a fight.

"You really think you can fight me, Mellark?" he asks with a scoff.

Peeta shrugs. "Might as well try."

Cato lunges at Peeta, fist raised, but Peeta easily blocks it, landing his own punch on Cato's stomach. I stand in the corner of the room, praying that Peeta doesn't get injured because of me. Cato groans and throws another punch aimed for Peeta's nose. He's not quick enough this time and the punch lands right on his cheek. As Peeta recovers, Cato darts for me. He grabs me roughly be my arms and I almost scream out in pain.

Suddenly Cato is ripped away from me; Peeta pushes him to the floor. Cato groans again but before he can return to his feet, Peeta has him pinned. Cato manages to wriggle an arm loss and punches Peeta right in the jaw. He looks dazed for a few seconds then quickly lands a punch on Cato's jaw causing the same effect. Peeta pins his hand again and leans close to Cato's face.

"Don't you ever touch her again." He says, his voice calm with an under lacing of anger. I didn't know he could sound so intimidating. Or even that sounding calm could be extremely disturbing at the same time. "If I find out that you laid a hand on her again, I'll make sure you can never use that hand again."

Cato nods, his eyes wide in fear. Peeta climbs off of him and walks over to me. His face is bruised, his brow furrowed. He eyes me for a minute, his eyes an unusually deep shade of blue. He grabs my hand and leads me to the door. I glance over my shoulder to Cato who stays on the floor, wincing as he rubs his jaw. Peeta pushes the door open and gently pushes me out.

"Come on." he says as he takes my hand and leads me down the left wing.

"Hold still." I order as Peeta leans away from the towel I'm using to clean the cut on his jaw. He adjusts his position on the cool tiles of the bathroom floor he and Gale share, gaining me better access to the cut.

"I'm so sorry this happened, Peeta." I tell him as I dab at the cut.

"Why didn't you just tell me? I could have helped sooner."

"Beacause he threatened to hurt Prim if I said anything and I wasn't going to take that risk. And he's probably still going to hurt her!" I say, more tears forming in my eyes. I'm sick of crying.

"He won't. I won't let him." Peeta tells me firmly.

"You can't always control everything. You can't stand outside her door at school, making sure Cato doesn't come to hurt her. You can't be her bodyguard." I say defeated. My hand falls to my lap, the towel still clutched in my fingers.

Peeta sighs. "How are your arms?" he asks quietly.

"Fine." I mumble. They are actually really sore. Peeta reaches out and pulls my sleeve up revealing the purple bruise formed around my upper arm. He checks the other one which wields the same results.

"I'm sorry, Katniss." he says in a hurt tone.

"Why are you sorry? I'm the one who brought you into this mess." I answer, completely baffled at why he's appologizing.

"Because I let him hurt you. Because he's hurt you in the past. Because I didn't notice."

"None of this is your fault, Peeta. Don't blame yourself." I tell him sternly. He just sighs, his fingers ghosting along the bruise on my arm.

I continue to clean his cut, hoping that I'm not making it worse because really, I have no idea what I'm doing. "You might have to see the hotel doctor or whatever it is." I tell him as he winces.

"Its just a cut, Katniss. I'm not going to die or anything." he says with a chuckle.

"But it could get infected. I really don't want you to get sick for the rest of the trip."

"I'm sure it will be fine. I've had plenty of cuts before and I never went to the doctor for them." Of course. His mother.

"This is pretty deep though." I say as I point at it.

"It'll be fine." he says dismissively. I huff at him. It's obvious I won't be able to convince him to go. Fine. If he gets sick, it's not my fault. Well it kind of is...

I toss the towel aside once I've got the cut as clean as possible. Or at least I hope. I stand and offer him my hand. He grabs it and I help him to his feet. He assesses the cut in the mirror before he turns to me.

"Thank you." he says quietly.

"You probably shouldn't thank me yet. I could have made it worse."

"Okay, I take it back." he says with a smirk. I punch him lightly on the arm. Then suddenly, I'm yawning. Peeta laughs lightly.

"We should probably get you to bed."

"I'm pretty sure I can make it without an escort, Peeta."

"I'm not going to risk Cato waiting for you. I'll walk you." he says finally. I have to hold in a groan.

He opens the bathroom door and peers out before he motions me forward. He takes my hand and slowly pulls me out of the bathroom. I glance over at the bed Gale is sleeping in. I can just barely make out is form under the pile of blanket. And just lightly, I can make out his snoring.

Peeta pulls me to the door and we quickly exit, shutting the door as quietly as possible. We both let out a sigh of relief as we stand in the empty hall.

"It's a good thing Gale sleeps like a baby." Peeta says lightly. I grin at him.

"That would have been a nightmare to have to explain. Us sneaking into your room, your face all bloody and bruised. Imagine the harassment we get for that."

"Oh, god. I don't even want to know the things Gale would come up with. But he's still going to see the bruises tomorrow." He says as we walk down the hall.

"That's true…" I say, no feeling completely hopeless. I had hoped I could solve my problem with Cato without the whole school finding out. But when Gale asks Peeta how he got so beat up, Peeta is sure to tell him the truth. And I really don't expect anything less from him, he wouldn't be able to lie to our best friend.

Peeta, sensing the dread in my voice, pulls me to a stop. "You know I won't tell him, right?" He says warily.

"Peeta, I know you hate lying to people. I won't blame you if you tell him." I say

"Katniss, I do hate lying to people, especially my friends, but I'm not going to tell Gale what happened. It's not my story to tell, and if later you want to tell him about Cato, then I'll tell him the truth. But I wouldn't do that unless you were ready, Katniss." He tells me, his grip on my hand tightening slightly.

I stare at him in shock. I know I should be; it's Peeta after all. Of course he wouldn't tell. Especially if it was to save me from the torment of having to deal with the rumors and snickers that would most definitely arise from the students. An overwhelming feeling of gratitude rushes through me and I fling myself at him.

He stagers back, obviously surprised by my sudden outburst. To be honest, I wasn't expecting it either. After he recovers from his shock, his arms snake around my waist, pulling me closer.

"Thank you, Peeta." I whisper into his chest, feeling suddenly embarrassed by my actions. In response, his grip on me tightens as be buries his face in my hair. A foreign feeling begins to bubble in my stomach. Warm and curious. And I don't like it; it scares me. Reluctantly, I slide out of his grasp, my face heating up.

Without a word, he takes my hand again guides me down the hall. Once we reach my room, we stand there awkwardly. I can't seem to meet his eyes so stare at my shoes instead.

"Goodnight, Katniss." Peeta says softly, causing me to look up. A small smile is stuck on his face and once again, the warm feeling begins pooling in my stomach.

"Goodnight, Peeta." I whisper. He leans in hesitantly, his face inches from mine. If I hadn't known any better it looks like he wants to kiss me. And not on the cheek. But the though quickly diminishes when he tilts his head to the side, placing a light, lingering kiss on my cheek. Without my consent, my grip on his hand tightens and I pull him closer, causing the kiss to last longer.

When he pulls back, a shy smile gracing his lips, I feel my cheeks burn with incredible heat. I release his hand and turn to my door. I pull the key out of my back pocket and open it, a cool breeze blowing from the room. I turn back to Peeta a last time and give him a small wave. He smiles at me then turns and walks down the hall back to his room, leaving me standing in my doorway staring after him.

* * *

"Gale!" Madge squeaks, dusting the snow off her coat. "You better watch it or I'll give you a snowball right in the face."

Gale laughs, rolling another snowball in his hand. I sit down in the snow, my gloved hands digging into it as I examine the wet substance. It's a different texture than at home. More soft and not grey from the coal floating through the air due to the coal plants. It's crisp and is the word that keeps popping into my head when I see it.

Gale throws another snow ball, this one aimed at Peeta who's sitting next to me, drawing patterns in the snow with his finger. It hits him right in the face and I almost double over in laughter. Gale, on the other hand, does. He falls down in the snow, clutching his stomach with his hand as he laughs.

We all decided after breakfast to walk around outside. We stopped at the ski hills and watched as some of the students attempted to ski. It was rather comically, they all looked completely lost and awkward trying to balance on the skis. We couldn't help but laugh. Since Madge and I didn't feel like making ourselves look completely ridiculous with so many people around we all decided to try skiing when it was less crowded.

So here we are, sitting in the snow covered field that Gale and Peeta played football in yesterday. And surprisingly, no one mentioned Peeta's bruised face or the cut on his jaw. I'm assuming Peeta told Gale some lie about him tripping or something and Madge probably didn't ask anything, fearing that it would be rude to snoop around in his business. Either way, I'm grateful it didn't become a topic during breakfast.

Peeta wipes away the snow from his face. I would expect to see an angry expression on his face, but he has on the same winning smile he always sports. He quickly balls up some snow and lugs it at an unsuspecting Gale. It smacks in right on the cheek and his eyes grow wide from shock. Peeta and I crack up while Madge giggles from her spot next to Gale.

After the shock passes he starts rolling another snowball, a mischievous smile plastered on his face. Uh oh. This is not going to end well. I automatically scoot away from Peeta, sure that he will be the target for Gale's attack. Madge seems to notice as well and copies my action, putting a few feet between her and Gale. My eyes find Peeta to see him rolling a snowball with three already sitting at his feet.

Both boys jump to their feet a minute later, large snowballs clutched in their hands.

"Any last words, Baker Boy?" Gales says, a crazy glint in his gray eye.

"Really, Gale? Could you get any more cliché?" Peeta asks with a chuckle.

"Actually, I can. But I don't want to waste any of my charm on you." He retorts with a smirk.

Peeta scoffs. "What charm?"

"You'll never know. So…any last words?" Gale asks.

"May the best man win." Peeta answers in mock seriousness.

And just like that the snowballs start flying faster than I can keep track. Gale hits Peeta in the stomach but Peeta quickly retaliates with a snowball to the side of Gales head. For the next ten minutes they chase around each other, flinging snowballs into each other's face. Some of them make a smacking sound and I begin to wonder if they might bruise from how hard they're throwing them. Madge and I sit on the sidelines laughing or butts off at the two of them. Who knew a snowball fight could be so entertaining? They only stop to create more snowballs and by the time ten minutes rolls around they are both out of breath.

Once the last snowball hits Gale in the side, they both collapse into the snow, wheezing as they laugh and try to catch their breaths. Me and Madge join them, sitting next to them.

"Well…who won?" Gale asks in between breaths. Me and Madge look at each other and I can tell she's thinking the same thing as me.

"It's a tie." We say at the same time causing Gale and Peeta to groan.

"Leave it to you guys to say it's a tie. You can never pick a winner in anything we do." Gale huffs and me and Madge laugh as he grumbles.

Just think we hear the sound of laughing coming our way. We all turn our heads to see a Johanna Mason and Annie Cresta. Johanna throws her head back as she laughs and Annie appears to be suppressing a smile. When they finally notice us they jog over to our spot.

"You guys have to see this! It's hilarious!" Johanna says as she tries to catch her breath.

"Johanna, be nice. That's my boyfriend you're talking about." Annie says sternly, although the smile that's threatening to consume her whole face betrays her.

"See what?" Gale asks.

"Finnick trying to ski. He's fallen at least five times in the last two minutes. He looks like a bumbling idiot." Johanna answers, earning herself an elbow to the stomach from Annie.

"Awesome. I wanna see." Gale says as he stands and dusts the snow from his pants.

"Me too." Madge chimes in.

"What about you guys?" Johanna asks me and Peeta.

"In a minute. I still need to catch my breath." Peeta says as he leans back on his hands.

"I'll wait with Peeta." I answer. Johanna smirks, her eyes switching between me and Peeta.

"Okay, see ya guys in a minute then. Or more…" She says, still smirking. They all leave in the direction they came until me and Peeta can't see them anymore.

I turn to Peeta to find him already watching me.

"You didn't have to wait for me." He says after a minute.

"I know. But I wanted to." I tell him. We sit there for a moment, just staring at each other. Normally, with anyone else, that would make me extremely uncomfortable but there's something calming about sitting here with Peeta, just enjoying each other's company. His cheeks are flushed from the cold and his recent activities. There are snowflakes stuck to his eyelashes and I giggle.

My eyes grow wide in shock. I don't giggle. Peeta looks at me questioningly and I just shake my head. He scoots closer to me, our sides now touch, and throws his arm around my shoulder. I lean into him, my head falling to his shoulder as I reach for his hand. It's almost scary how comfortable I can be with him. Like he's the only person I can let my guard down with. That's horrible thinking but I can't help it.

I close my eyes, soaking up the warmth that always radiates off him. His other arm comes around to circle my waist. Much to my surprise, a contented sigh escapes my lips and my cheeks flush beet red when I hear Peeta's soft chuckle. God, Katniss. Could you be any weirder? I fight the urge to run and hide under a bush or something. I'm sure that wouldn't help anything.

We sit like that for a few more minutes and after I calm down from my completely embarrassing moment, I let myself relax again. I'm definitely in no hurry to see Finnick's attempts to ski. At one point I almost doze off, Peeta's head resting on top of mine. He pulls me closer to the point where I'm almost sitting on his lap. He has me angled so he can see me easier.

I look up to see he sparkling blue eyes and my heart flutters in my chest. Dang it, Peeta. I wish he would stop doing that to me. No matter how badly I want to look away, to stop the odd sensation filling my stomach, I can't do it. I watch as Peeta's bites his bottom lip nervously and suddenly I'm curious.

"What is it?" I ask him.

His eyes grow wide for a second before he recovers and adverts his eyes. He looks extremely nervous now and my curiosity peaks.

"Peeta, what is it?" he still refuses to look me in the eyes so I gently grab his chin and pull his face towards my direction. Our eyes lock and my breath catches in my throat. He's eyes are now filled with determination, catching me completely off guard. My hand reaches up, my fingers ghosting along his cheek and I can hear his breathing pick up.

I'm so completely baffled by everything that just happened that I barely even notice he's leaned in to me. Our faces just inches apart. My eyes grow wide when I realize what he wants to do. And to my utter surprise, I find myself leaning in too. I stop, our lips so close to touching. My mind is practically screaming at me to back away but I can't. And I don't want to.

As I'm having this internal battle with myself about kissing my best friend, Peeta leans back. A shaky breath escapes his lips as he runs a hand through his blonde curls. His cheeks tinted pink. I can feel my own cheeks flushing as realization hit. I almost kissed my best friend. Oh my god…

Peeta once again catches me completely off guard when he speaks. "Would you like to go out to dinner with me tonight?"


	7. Chapter 7

**AN* Just so you guys know, when I am finished with this story I already have another story in mind. It's a Katniss/Peeta story again but this one will be a lot different.**

**I already have a lot of it planned out and it will definitely have a more serious plot line than this one. It's still going to be AU, just not full of fluff.**

**Here's a hint: the story line was inspired by the song The Fighter by Gym Class Heroes. It is not a song fic, though.**

**Anywho, now that my little announcement is over, it's time to get back to the story. I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

**P.S. Sorry this chapter is so short. I've been really busy the past couple days. **

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own The Hunger Games. Just sayin'.**

* * *

CHAPTER 7

I stare at him in shock, my mouth hanging open. Did he seriously just ask me out on a date? My mind seems to shut down because the only thing I manage to do is close my mouth. I can't believe this. Why on earth would Peeta want to go on a date with me? We're best friends! Nothing more!

I already promised myself I would never have any relationship. With anybody. I cannot turn into my mother. I cannot depend on other people because they are always taken away. I can't do any of that.

Peeta seems to sense my discomfort and quickly corrects his statement. "I mean as friends of course." he says, the twinkle in his eye fading.

I eye him warily, still worried about the whole idea. We just almost kissed and now he wants to go to dinner. I seriously hate thinking about what would happen then. It's just not a good idea.

Then I realize something. He's my best friend, why would I not be able to go to dinner with him? He's right, we're just friends. For some reason, the thought makes me feel hollow, which is ridiculous. I can have dinner with a friend. Nothing to worry about.

"Okay." I whisper after a moment.

Peeta's face lights up. "Really?" he asks hopefully.

"Yeah, we're friends right?"

"Right." he says quietly, his eyes dropping to his lap.

Only then do I realize that I'm still practically sitting on his lap, my arms still around his neck as his arms are resting around my waist. I blush ferociously and place my hands on his chest to push myself off of him.

He looks up as well, realization dawning on his face as he notices or position too. His arms drop from my waist, leaving a cool feeling where they rested. I try not to let my disappointment show. That was the whole idea anyway; to scoot away from him.

We sit there awkwardly, neither of us looking at each other. After a moment, Peeta rises to his feet and offers his hand to me. I take it with a smile and he pulls me to my feet. We start walking in the direction that Johanna, Gale, Annie and Madge left in.

* * *

We finally make it to the group, hand in hand. A small circle is formed around Finnick as he wobbles while trying to ski. Gale turns around when he hears us approaching.

"You finally told her, Baker Boy?" Gale asks cheerfully. My brow furrows as I try to figure out what he's talking about.

I look up to Peeta, hoping to find an answer, to see his face bright red as he sends a glare at Gale. "No." he states simply, a warning in his eyes.

Gale's eyes widen as he looks between the two of us. He sheepishly runs the back of his neck with his hand. "Sorry...you guys just looked so happy..." Gale mumbles, confusing me even more.

"What are you talking about, Gale?" I ask him.

"Oh...nothing. Forget I said anything."

I look to Peeta once again. He's glaring at Gale and suddenly I feel anger boiling inside me.

"Will you guys tell me what the heck you're talking about?" I hiss.

Peeta looks down at me, his face pink. He looks slightly panicked before he just smiles. "It's nothing. Gale just wanted me to tell you that we decided to check out the courtyard tomorrow." he says smoothly. And I don't believe a word of it.

I stare at him, hoping he catches the anger in my eyes since I know he's lying to me. Peeta wouldn't have gotten mad that Gale ruined that little piece of info.

Peeta just smiles sadly at me before pulling on my hand to join the group. I consider yanking my hand out of his, but I figure this is probably not the best place to yell at him. So I let him pull me into the group and keep my hand in his.

"Careful, Finnick." Annie calls to him, a concerned expression on her face as she watches him.

"I'm fine, Annie. Calm down." he says calmly.

"But you look like your about to fall." she whines.

"I do not." Finnick says, causing snickers to erupt from the group. He glares at everyone, his green eyes piercing, before turning his attention back to staying on his feet.

"I hope you trip, Odair." Johanna says with a smirk.

"Johanna!" Annie scolds.

"What? It's the truth. I would just love to see his pretty little face covered in snow."

"Thank you, Jo." says Finnick.

"Your thanking her for wishing you would fall on your face?" Gale ask confused.

"No. I'm thanking her for complementing my good looks." he answers with a smirk.

"I was being sarcastic." Johanna hisses.

"No, I don't think I heard any sarcasm in your comment. Really, it's okay. You can admit I'm gorgeous."

Johanna scoffs. "Yeah right."

"I think your gorgeous, Finnick." Annie says with a smile.

"Thanks, Annie. I think your gorgeous, too." he says with a wink. Everyone groans except Annie who just giggles.

"You guys are disturbing." Johanna says as she wrinkles her nose.

Finnick raises an eyebrow at her, a challenging look on his face. Then, in one quick swoop, he has Annie in his arms, kissing her.

Johanna makes a gagging noise before she covers her eyes. "Thanks, Fin. Now I have to bleach my eyes." she says, disgusted. Finnick gives her a triumphant grin once he pulls away from Annie.

"No prob, Jo. What are friends for?" He says slyly.

Annie just stands there looking flustered. She doesn't move until Finnick gives her a slight nudge and she blushes. I can hear someone chuckle next to me and I look up to see Peeta trying to hide his laugh.

"What?" I ask him.

He shakes his head. "Nothing."

"What is it, Peeta? You were just laughing. And I swear to God if you lie to me again, I will punch you as hard as I can." I tell him seriously, still mad at him for lying to me.

He hesitates, shifting uncomfortably from one foot to another while he eyes me warily. My brow furrows at his behavior and I consider punching him right now.

"It's just…" He pauses and bows his head.

"What?" I ask impatiently. He looks at me, his blue eyes filled with something I can't place and suddenly my anger fades. "What" I ask softer.

He hesitates again. "It's really nothing, Katniss. Just…pretend I didn't say anything." He says softly. I open my mouth to tell him I can't just _pretend _he didn't say anything. But I close my mouth and let it slide. I shouldn't force him to tell me something he doesn't want to. Even if I really, really want to know.

"Okay." I tell him. He smiles gratefully at me and I can't help but smile back. If only his smile wasn't so infectious.

He squeezes my hand, pulling me closer to his side. He leans in and I let out an involuntary shiver. I can tell he's trying to suppress a smile then he places his lips next to my ear and whispers, "You're shivering."

"Sorry" I mutter. I'm surprised I even got a word out of me.

"Why are you sorry?" he asks.

"Umm…I don't know."

He chuckles at me and wraps his arms around me, warming me up. "You should have brought a thicker coat with you."

"I didn't realize I was going to the Antarctic, otherwise I would have." I tell him with a frown.

He laughs. "Yeah. I didn't realize it was going to be this cold but I assumed." He says with a smirk and I wiggle my arm out of his grasp to punch his arm.

"Hey, it's not my fault I used my brain."

My mouth drops open in shock. "I use my brain!" I protest.

"I was kidding! I think everyone here knows that you probably use your brain the most. I'm stupid compared to you." He says as if it's the most obvious thing.

"Don't say that. You are nowhere close to stupid." I tell him sternly, upset that he would think that way.

"That's not what my mother says." He tells me as he looks away, the hurt obvious in his eyes.

I place my hand on his cheek and move his face to look at me. I force him to make eye contact with me and I can feel the tears well up in my eyes when I see how hurt he is. He looks so broken. It's so hard to connect this broken boy with the smiling cheerful boy that I see so often.

"Don't ever believe what she tells you, Peeta. You are not stupid and you never will be." I tell him sternly.

"Okay." He whispers hesitantly. I brush the hair out of his eyes and pull him into a hug. He automatically returns it and buries his face in my hair.

I'm not sure how long we stand there in an embrace but we're cut off when someone clears their throat. I blush when I realize there are other people still here. We pull away from each other, our faces bright red as we turn around to face the snickering group.

"What?" I ask harshly.

"Nothing. We were just enjoying the show." Johanna says with a smirk. "Are you guys sure you hugged long enough of was ten minutes enough?" she says with a laugh. I blush even more. I seriously hope it was not ten minutes.

* * *

I pace back and forth in my room. I can't do this... But I already said yes. Would it be rude if I canceled last minute? Probably, but do I care? I sigh when I realize the answer is yes.

How could I have agreed to this? That was stupid of me! Peeta said we are going as friends but I can't help the feeling that I wish it was more. And that's stupid. I don't want more. I can't have more.

I'm startled out of my thoughts when my phone rings. I run to my nightstand and answer the phone. "Hello?" I ask breathlessly.

"Katniss, are you all right? You sound kind of winded." Prim's concerned voice answers.

"Wha- Oh! Yeah...I just ran to the phone when I heard it ring. That's all."

"In a rush, are we?" she asks teasingly and the truth is, I am. Not for dinner, but my mind is running like crazy.

"You could say that."

"Should I call you later so you can go?"

"No. I still have a few minutes."

"Okay, so what's your plans for the evening.". She asks.

"A date. I mean- not a date. I didn't mean to say that. I meant...a gathering...or something like that I guess." I try to explain.

"Umm... Are you sure it's not a date?"

"Yes. It's just dinner with Peeta."

I have to pull the phone away from my ear when Prim squeals at the top of her lungs. "Prim! Are you all right?"

"Oh my god, Katniss! How did it happen?" she squeaks.

"How did what happen?"

"How did you guys decide to go out? Did he ask you? Did you ask- no of course you didn't. How did he ask?"

"He asks and I said okay." I say simply.

"Oh come on, Katniss! I need details!"

"Why would you need details?" I ask incredulously.

"Because that's so sweet, Kat."

"I told you we are just going as friends."

"I know but it's still sweet. So how did it happen?"

"I told you. He asked and I said okay."

Prim huffs. "You're no fun."

Just then I hear a knock on the door.

"Oh, I have to go Prim. Peetas here." I tell her, the nervous feeling returning.

She squeals again. "Okay have fun! And call me tonight to tell me how it goes!"

I groan. "Fine."

"Don't forget!"

"I won't. I have to go, though." I tell her quickly.

"Okay. Have fun."

"Bye, Prim."

"Bye."

I hang up the phone and run to the door. I pull it open and Peeta is standing in front of me in a deep blue button up shirt. He has a shy smile on his face as he extends his hand.

"Ready?" he ask.

I smile. "Ready."


	8. Chapter 8

**AN* Here is chapter 8! WooHhoo! This chapter has a major fluff ender so get excited. **

**Also, there is only a few more chapters left in this story and then a possible epilogue. So if you guys would like an epilogue, please let me know. **

**And for those who may be wondering about my other story that I will be posting after this one if finished, it will be an AU set in Chicago, The story line will be more serious than this one with less fluff and more angst. **

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own The Hunger Games. **

**P.S. For some reason the format for this one got kind of jacked and I'm not sure how to fix it so I'm sorry about that. **

CHAPTER 8

"So where are we going?" I ask Peeta as we walk down the hill towards the train station.  
It's snowing lightly, the sun beginning to sink below the horizon causing the air to look hazy. It cast a light orange glow on the low hanging clouds and I can't help but admire the beauty of it.  
"It's a surprise." he says slyly as he nudges me with his elbow.  
"You can't just tell me?" I ask impatiently.  
He chuckles as he tosses his arm around my shoulder. "Where would the fun in that be?"  
"I wouldn't be tortured with suspense. That's not fun. What if I don't like the place?"  
"Then I guess I would take you somewhere else. Although I think you would like this place. And you wouldn't know if you liked it unless you actually tried it."  
"Please?"  
"Nope." he answers with a smirk.  
"Fine." I say with a huff. I hate surprises more than anything.  
"The sunset's beautiful tonight." Peeta says thoughtfully.  
I look up at the horizon. At the bright orange glowing on the clouds. "Yeah, it is."  
"That's my favorite color." he says pointing at the clouds.  
"Orange?"  
"Yes. Sunset orange." he says with a small smile.  
I can feel my lips pull up into a smile at his statement. "It's very pretty. You would think that for as long as I've known you, I would have none that."  
He nods in agreement. "What's your favorite color?"  
"Green. Like the trees in the forest."  
He smiles down at me. "That's a nice color." he tells me.  
"Yeah...so are you sure you can't tell me where we're going?"  
"Man, you are impatient." he says with a small laugh. "We're almost there anyway."  
We walk for a few more minutes in silence. I don't mind it. Actually, I savor it. The past few days have been so hectic, it's nice to finally just have a few moments of silence. And Peeta is making it all the better. He has a very calming presence that seems to radiate to the people around him. I can't help but admire him for that.  
I look up at him and, sensing my eyes on him, he looks down at me and gives me a warm smile.  
After another minute of walking, Peeta interrupts the silence, "Here we are." he says a he points to an old looking building.  
I instantly recognize it. The worn letters spelling out 'The Hob' on the sign are a dead giveaway. It's the same diner that we passed the first night here on the way to the hotel. I still looks rundown but pleasant. It's the perfect place.  
"This is perfect, Peeta." I tell him as I stare at the old building.  
"I saw you looking at it the first night and you seemed kin of interested so I thought I would take you here. I really hope it's okay." he says as he runs the back of his neck.  
"Peeta, it's perfect. Trust me."  
He smiles. "Good." he says, relieved. He walks ahead and opens the door for me. I laugh at this. Always the gentleman.  
"Thank you." I tell him as I walk into the diner.  
"You're welcome." he follows in behind me and we both stop and take in our surroundings.  
The diner is warm, a soft glow illuminating the small space. The walls are made of wood along with the floors. The whole place reminds me of a cabin. I never knew a diner could feel cozy. My mouth waters at the smell of the place. A mingle of different stews and breads. It really smells delicious.  
Peeta leads to a small booth in the corner of the room, towards the back. A single candle sits in the middle with wax dripping down the side, onto the wood. I slide into one side of the booth and Peeta sits on the other.  
The seats are a deep green leather with a few tears in the fabric. I run my finger over one of the rips, feeling the rough edges against my finger. I smile at it. It reminds me of home and our torn chairs. I look up to see Peeta watching me, an easy smile on his lips.  
He opens his mouth to speak but is shuts it when an old woman hobbles I've to the table, two menus in hand. She looks elderly, with gray hair and wrinkles. Her white apron is stained with coffee and bits of food.  
"My name is Greasy Sae and I will be your server today. Here are your menus." she says as she places the menus on the table. "I'll be back in a few minutes to take your order. Can I get you any drinks to start off with?"  
Peeta picks up his menu and turns to the section for drinks. I follow his lead and scan the menu quickly.  
"Um... I'll have a hot chocolate." I tell her.  
"I'll have the same." Peeta says and the waitress nods as she writes on her notepad. "Okay, I'll be back in a minutes." she says as she turns around and leaves.  
I look around the diner. There's a couple sitting at a booth across the table from us, giggling and laughing at each other. There's a family sitting at one of the tables in the center of the room. A father, a mother and a little girl. She reminds me of Prim.  
I decide it would probably be a good idea if I thought of something to eat. I pick up my menu and after some internal debate, I settle on a small chicken pot pie.  
"What are you going to get?" I ask Peeta.  
"I was thinking about trying the beef stew. What about you?"  
"Chicken pot pie."  
"Good choice." he says with a smile.  
"Of course. I take nothing but the best." I say jokingly.  
He smirks at me. "What if it tastes disgusting?"  
"Then we'll call that a fluke."  
We both laugh at my stupid excuse and a few moments later the waitress comes back with our drinks. She sets the steaming cup of hot chocolate in front of us. Then, in the middle of the table, he sets down a bowl of pink heart-shaped marshmallows.  
"What's that for?" I ask stupidly.  
"For the hot chocolate." she says with a concerned look.  
"I know but why are they pink hearts? Did we come on some kind of theme night or something?"  
She chuckles at me. "No we always give those to the couples that come here."  
If I had been drinking something, I'm sure I would have spit it out all over the table. I look at Peeta to see him staring at her with wide eyes.  
"No. We are not a couple." I say, and the horrible stupid disappointment returns at that statement.  
"Oh!" she exclaims in surprise. "I'm sorry. You guys just looked...like a couple."  
Me and Peeta blush at her comment. "No, we're just friends." Peeta says quietly, his eyes on the table. I nod in agreement.  
"Well, I'm sorry. You can keep the marshmallows anyway. So have you decided on what to eat?"  
Peeta looks up again, the easy smile returning to his face. "We'll take a pot pie and a bowl of beef stew."  
Greasy Sae scribbles away on her notepad before giving us a quick nod and heading back to wherever it was she came from.  
I look back to Peeta to catch him watching me. I smile at him and, much to my surprise, he blushes. That's odd.  
"Are you hot?"  
His eyes widen and I realize how that must have sounded. "I-I mean are you warm? In here..." I say in an attempt to correct myself.  
"Oh. No, I'm fine. Are you hot...I mean warm."  
I laugh. "No, I'm comfortable. You just looked a little flushed."  
At that statement he blushes even more. "I'm fine." he says softly.  
"Uh-huh." I say completely unconvinced.  
"I am. Really."  
"If you say so..."  
"I do." he says, his eyes sparkling. I raise an eyebrow at him and he copies me. I laugh as he tries to remain serious but completely fails, soon joining me in my laugh.  
People from the other booths watch us like we're crazy while the couple in the booth across from the room give us knowing looks which confuse just confuse me.  
I pick up my hot chocolate once I'm positive I won't choke on it from my laughter. I take a slow sip and the warm liquid automatically warms me up. It is absolutely delicious.  
"Have you tried the hot chocolate yet?" I ask Peeta.  
"Not yet."  
"You have to try it. It's delicious. It should be awarded best hit chocolate in the state. Or country."  
He smiles at me, amused and picks up his mug. He takes a sip and his face light up. "Man, this is delicious."  
"Told you. I don't lie when it comes to hot chocolate."  
"Apparently not. You could get a job as a hot chocolate taster. You could travel the world tasting new recipes." he says jokingly.  
"I could. But I don't any of them would be as good as this one."  
"You never know. What if you found one that was ten times as good as this one."  
"Then I would be in heaven." I say simply, causing Peeta to crack up.  
"This is not a laughing matter. We must take hot chocolate seriously." I say in mock seriousness, trying to keep a straight face.  
His smile drops as he joins me. "Forgive me. I should not have disgraced hot chocolate in such a way."  
I can't keep my smile back and suddenly I'm laughing my butt off.  
"Are you disgracing the sacred chocolate?" Peeta ask, aghast.  
"Sorry but that's funny!"  
Peeta starts laughing as well and I'm pretty sure we ran some of the customers out of the diner with our noise. But I don't have it in me to feel guilty. I'm having too much fun.  
Greasy Sae shows up with our food. She places a large bowl of beef stew in front of Peeta and his eyes grow wide. I'm going to be really surprised if he can eat all of that. Then she places a small pot pie in front of me and I breathe a sigh of relief when I realize I can probably finish it. My pot pie steams, a mouthwatering aroma filling the area. Peeta also has a roll with his stew but I can guarantee it won't be as good as the ones he makes.

"There you guys go. Enjoy the food." Sae says then she's gone once again.

"Well…this is gigantic." Peeta says as he eyes his bowl.

"Think you can handle it?" I ask with a smirk.

"I'm gonna have to try. For the sake of the diner."

I snort at his comment as I cut into my pot pie. Steam spews from the center. It smells awesome, just like everything else here. We eat for a few minutes in silence, both of us enjoying our food. I look up at Peeta to see him ripping a piece of his roll.

I stick my hand out, asking for a piece and he places one in my hand. I pop it in my mouth and make a face.

He chuckles. "How is it?"

"Compared to yours, they suck. But I'm sure for a restaurant roll they are delicious."

"Well, it's nice to know you think so highly of my baking skills." He answers with a slight smirk.

"It's the truth. You make the absolute best rolls and cakes…and cookies…and pies…"

"Thank you."

"And cheese buns! Those are fantastic! That would go great with my pot pie." I say as I glance at my food. I wish I had a cheese bun now…

"Well when we get home I'll bake you a dozen cheese buns. How about that?" Peeta asks.

"Okay…but I want one now." I say with a pout.

Peeta laughs, reaching across the table to take my hand. "You can have them when we get home."

I huff. "Okay. But you have to promise you'll make them."

"Of course I promise. I wouldn't have a choice anyway. I have to make them for the bakery every day."

"Oh that's right."

"But you will be the first one to have one." He tells me with a smile. I beam back at him.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome." He says as he tries to pull his hand back but I won't let him. I tighten my grip on his hand. He looks startled at first but then his warm smile is back.

We finish our meal, our hand clasped together at the middle of the table as we ate. Peeta was only able to eat half of his stew. I couldn't help but smirk at him. I finished my pot pie and even helped him finish off his roll. It was still horrible compared to Peeta's.

I wanted to pay for my food but Peeta insisted on paying the bill. He wouldn't take no for an answer, much to my displeasure.

"Remember, Katniss. It's okay to accept gifts." He told me with a smile. I scowled at him and crossed my arms over my chest. He just shook his head in amusement and paid the bill.

We are walking back to the hotel now. It's snowing harder than when we left and the wind has picked up. The sky is dark, the clouds hanging low and dark in the sky. I pull my jacket closer in an attempt to stay warm. Peeta pulls me close to him and whispers in my eye, "I told you, you should have brought a warmer coat."

His breathe tickles my skin and I shiver. He pulls me closer again.

"Thank you for dinner, Peeta."

He looks down at me and smiles. "I should be thanking you."

"Why?" I ask incredulously.

"Because you actually accepted my invitation."

"Did you think I would say no?"

"Well, I figured that was a large possibility." He says sheepishly.

"Oh." Is all I can say.

"I've been thinking about asking you to dinner for… awhile now." He admits, his face reddening.

"Really?" I ask, my heart suddenly beating faster. I don't like that.

"Yeah. I was too scared to ask, though."

"You were scared to ask a friend out to dinner?"

He sighs, his face falling slightly. "Well, it was a little more than that…" He trails off, his eyes flickering to me for a second before moving back to the road in front of us.

"How so?" I ask, my curiosity getting the better of me. I don't know if I really want to know that answer.

He looks down at me again. He looks nervous but his eyes never leave mine. The light of the street lamps cast a soft glow on his flushed cheeks. He looks absolutely handsome.

"Can I show you something?" He asks, his eyes turning hopeful.

"Sure." I whisper.

He grabs my hand in his warm one and leads me around the hotel. I hadn't even realized we had arrived already. He leads me around the left wing of the building. I want so badly to ask where we are going but I know he won't tell me anyway. But I mainly just want him to explain his previous comment. He said it was more than just asking a friend to dinner. I don't see how that could be though. Not unless he thought of me as something more than a friend and I know that's not true. The though makes me want to run and hide.

He stops abruptly and I almost run into his back. I move to stand beside him, his had still in mine. I gasp as I look around me. We are standing in the courtyard. There are twinkling lights in the bushes, illuminating the roses and flowers. It is absolutely breathtaking.

I look up at Peeta. He is watching me, the warm smile I love so much gracing his lips. His blue eyes are bright and caring. I haven't seen so much emotion in them before and my breath hitches in my throat. He tugs on my hand and leads me to one of the wooden benches. We sit down and I position myself so I can look at him.

He does the same and tightens his grip on my hand. I scoot close to him so our knees touch. He runs a hand through his hair, mussing his blond curls. My brow furrows as I try to figure out why he looks so nervous. He looks at me, his eyes filled with intensity and determination.

"Katniss…" He trails off, rubbing the back of his neck. I reach up and pull his hand away, coaxing him to continue. The reflections of the lights twinkle in his eyes and for the first time in my life the word 'stunning' comes to mind to describe him.

"When I said that it was different when I asked you out to dinner…" He pauses his eyes drifting to his lap before moving back to mine. "It was different because…" his face flushes, 'because…I like you more than a friend." He says, his eyes locked on mine.

"What do you mean?" I ask because that doesn't make sense. Peeta can't like me more than a friend.

"I love you, Katniss."

My mouth drops open in surprise. Did he really just say that? My mind is racing like crazy and the whole time he's watching me but I can't say anything. His face falls slightly, the bright color in his eyes dims a bit and he looks down at his lap.

"I don't expect you to feel the same way and I'm sorry if that made you uncomfortable. I just needed you to know." He sounds hurt and broken and my heart breaks with him. But what do I say to him? I can't like him… I can't love the way he can. I can't become my mother.

I look up at him. He still has his eyes trained on his lap. My grip on his hands tightens involuntarily. It feels like if I don't hold onto him, he'll leave. A lump forms in my throat at the thought. And suddenly, I forgot all my logical thought and just allow myself to _feel_ something_._

I tug on his hands, a warm feeling pooling in the pit of my stomach. It feels foreign but pleasant and for the first time, I don't push it away. I tug on his hand again and he looks up at me, confused. He must think I have rejected him. I don't even know myself. But I don't dwell on it long because the next thing I know, I have his face in my hands as I lean into him.

Our lips brush slightly, sending an electric shock down my spine. I give him a chance to pull away, my lips lingering just above his. He's still for a moment, clearly shocked by my outburst then, suddenly, his arms are around my waist and his lips press against mine. The electric shock multiplies and the warms feeling in my stomach feels like it burst into an inferno. My hands slide from his face to wrap around his neck.

He pulls me closer, and my hands find his hair. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I recognize this is the first kiss I've ever had. And even though this is the first, I honestly don't see how it could get any better. I never want this moment to end. My arms wrap tighter around his neck and he pulls me even closer, to the point where I'm practically on his lap. His lips are warm and soft against mine and so absolutely _Peeta. _

We pull away, in need of air. His blue eyes pop open and stare into mine and once again, I feel my breathing hitch. I rest my forehead against his, never breaking eye contact, too afraid to ruin this perfect moment. Our breathing slows but the warm feeling the Peeta caused doesn't. And at this moment, I would be perfectly fine if it stayed there forever.


	9. Chapter 9

**AN* I'm sorry this took so long to update. I've been pretty busy lately. **

**Anyway, I hope you like this chapter! Let me know what ya think. :D**

CHAPTER 9

We sit like that, me practically on his lap with my hands resting on his chest, his forehead resting on mine for what seems like eternity when in reality I'm sure it was only a few minutes. His blue eyes stare so intently into mine that I wonder if he can hear my thoughts. I can barely make out my thoughts as it is. There are so many of them that it's too hard to settle on just one. I wouldn't even know where to begin.

His hands that are still resting on my sides, warm me up from the cold wind outside. I know that if we don't go inside soon, we could very well catch pneumonia but I can't bring myself to care about that at the moment. I'm too caught up at staring at him. The memory of his lips on mine is still very fresh in my mind.

I can feel the panic starting to seep into my mind, reminding me of my careless actions. _I just kissed my best friend. _And even though that thought seems so wrong and so right at the same time, I push that panic aside. I can deal with that later but right now, I just want to enjoy the moment. And I do.

A small smile is beginning to creep onto Peeta's face, his eyes shining. I can feel the corner of my lips lifting to match his. I'm smiling so wide, it's starting to hurt my cheeks. He takes one of my hands in his and leans back slightly to look at me better. But I won't have it. My hand reaches up, gently grabbing the back of his neck and pulling him closer to me. I give him a light kiss and I can feel his smile against my lips.

Even that small kiss was enough to sends another electric shock down my spine. And as much as I would completely love to just sit here with him all night with his lips on mine, he pulls away. I frown slightly, causing him to chuckle.

"Does that mean you feel the same way?" he asks softly, his eyes nervous, unsure. The panic rushes back and it takes all of my might to bury deep inside me. I told myself earlier I would follow my feels. And that applies to right now.

I stare back at him, watching as his eyes nervously flicker down to our entwined hands. He almost looks ashamed for asking. I squeeze his hand reassuringly. His eyes flicker back to mine and the absolute love I see in them almost knocks my breath away. I nod my head quickly and his brows furrow in confusion.

I can't help but laugh at how completely lost he looks. This causes his brow to furrow even more. I roll my eyes at him and pull him in for another kiss. His bright blue eyes seem to register what this means and he leans in as well. Our lips meet again, the warm feeling in my abdomen burning at an incredible rate. If he could hold me any closer than I already am, then I'm sure he would. My arms wrap around his next and he deepens the kiss.

He pulls away, his eyes bright. "Was that a yes?" He asks quietly.

"Yes." I reply with a chuckle. His smile grows and he laughs with me and he hugs me tightly to his body.

"I should probably get you inside. It's getting late." He whispers against my ear, causing me to shiver.

"Okay." I say reluctantly. I climb off his lap and he stand up, extending me his hand. I happily take it and let him lead me inside. Once the warm air hits our faces with both sigh in relief. It was cold, even with Peeta's extra body heat. He walks me to my room, stopping outside the door to give me a light kiss on the cheek. I wave goodbye to him as I enter the room and he gives me one of his brilliant smiles.

As soon as the door closes behind me, Madge jumps up from her bed and rushes over to me.

"Oh my God, you guys kissed!" she squeals happily.

"Wha- how could you possibly know that?" I ask her, completely baffled at how she could have figured it out so quickly.

"Oh come on. You're practically glowing! And I haven't seen you smile that much in years!" She tells me as she takes my hand and leads me to her bed, forcing me to sit down. "Details! I need details!" she squeaks.

"You sound like Prim." I grumble.

"Well?" She asks excitedly.

"Why don't I call Prim and I can tell you guys at the same time. I told her I would call her to tell her how the date went. I mean the gathering…" I trail off as I grab my phone from the nightstand. I know there is no way I can avoid telling them. As much as I want to keep that moment between me and Peeta, I know they will eventually wring it out of me. I might as well get it over with.

"So you actually kissed? That's so exciting. I always knew you guys would end up together." Madge says.

"How would you know that? And we're not together."

"Not yet. And because you guys have practically been inseparable ever since you met. You guys are always sneaking glances at each other and hugging and holding hands. You are so comfortable around each other that it would have been ridiculous if you _didn't _end up together." She says as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. "Me and Gale have had a bet going for the past year on when you guys would realize your love for each other. I won."

I stare at her in shock. _What the heck? _Was it really that obvious for everyone else but me? I didn't even know I felt that way until earlier. Okay, I might have had some feeling that I suppressed but still. That's just ridiculous. And she and Gale even had a bet? I'm not sure if I should be mad about that or not.

"What do you mean you won?" I ask her.

"I told Gale it would be Junior year that you guys would realize it and well, it's Junior year. He said it wouldn't be until we all left for college and you guys realized you could live without each other."

My mouth drops open at her comment.

"So are you going to call Prim cause I am just dying to know how it happened." She says anxiously.

"Oh right…" I say as I dial Prim's number and turn it on speaker phone.

"Hello?" Her chipper voice comes from the phone. "How to the date go?" she asks excitedly.

I groan when she says date. "They kissed!" Madge squeals suddenly. I can hear Prim as she joins Madge and squeals in delight as well.

"Oh. My. Gosh. I can't believe it! How did it happen?" She shouts.

Madge turns to me expectantly. "Oh umm… well we kissed and ya know…that was it." I say evasively.

Madge huffs at me. "Come on, we need details. Right Prim?"

"Yes!"

"Well he took me to dinner. The Hob, its right down the hill and it was perfect by the way. We ate and then when we were walking home, he wrapped his arms around me to warm me up because I didn't bring a warm coat…" I trail off and smile sheepishly at Madge.

"And?" Prim prompts.

"And he was telling me about how he was nervous about asking me to dinner and I asks why he would be nervous about asking his friend to dinner and he said it was more than just asking a friend to dinner-" I'm cut off by Madge and Prims squeals.

"Then what?" Madge asks.

"Then he said he wanted to show me something. He took me around the building to the courtyard. It was so beautiful. There were twinkling lights in the bushes and flowers. It looked like something out of a fairy tale." I tell them, surprising myself at how ridiculous I sound. I sound like one of those love sick girls that always talks dreamily about their crushes. I always laughed at them…

"Then," I continue, "We sat down on one of the benches and he told me that he liked me more than a friend. I asked him what he meant and…he said he loved me."

Prim screams and Madge bounces on the bed like crazy person. "Awwwww!" Prim gushes.

"What happened next?" Madge asks.

"Man you guys are nosy." I say, but continue with the story. "Then he said he didn't expect me to feel the same way. I decided that I was just going to let myself feel something for once so…" I trail off.

"So?" Madge asks.

"So, I followed my feelings and… I pulled him into a kiss." I say sheepishly.

They both scream and I wouldn't be surprised if they woke up the whole building.

"Finally!" Prim shouts.

"What do you mean finally?" I ask her.

"You finally realize you love him. You have for years now. It was getting kind of tiring waiting for you to realize." She answers casually.

"Wha- was it really _that _obvious?"

"Yes." Prim and Madge answer at the same time.

"You've always been so afraid to let yourself love someone that anytime you got closer to Peeta, you pushed him away just the slightest." Prim tells me.

"I did?" I ask, completely baffled.

"Yeah. I remember last year, it was your birthday party and Peeta had made your birthday cake. He even decorated it. When mom and I brought it out you were standing by Peeta and when you say it you almost cried."

"Okay that's a lie! I do _not _cry." I tell her sternly.

"I could see tears in your eyes; you loved the cake so much. Then when you hugged Peeta, you guys looked so close to kissing but I think all the people staring at you guys freaked you out."

"It's true. I was there." Madge pipes in.

"Yep. But then after that you kind of avoided Peeta for a few days." Prim says.

"Are you sure? I think I would have remembered that… all of it." I say.

"I'm positive. Katniss, you have the tendency to push certain memories out of your head. Especially when they confuse you. Trust me. I've witnesses it a lot."

"So you better not avoid Peeta now!" Madge says.

"I won't. I don't think I could even if I wanted to. Which I don't." I assure them.

"Good. Now, I have homework I have to finish so I'll call you tomorrow, Katniss." Prim tells me.

"Okay, good night, Little Duck."

"Good night."

I hang up the phone and flop back on the bed. "Is my interrogation over?" I mumble to Madge.

She chuckles. "For now. I'm too tired to ask any more questions. Now get off my bed so I can sleep." She says as she shoves me.

I groan as I hit the floor. "Gee, thanks for being gentle."

She smirks. "No problem."

* * *

"This is ridiculous!" I say as I glance down as the hot pink, frilly dress Madge forced me into. "There is _no _way I'm wearing this."

"But you look good, Katniss." She says.

"No."

Madge had dragged me to The Mockingjay clothing store this afternoon to shop for dresses for the dance. I didn't want to go at all but after thirty minutes of her begging I finally gave in. I probably wouldn't have if I had realized who was going to be there.

"You look like cotton candy." Says Johanna with a smirk as she pulls a dress off the rack.

"Fantastic." I answer sarcastically.

"Why? You don't want to look like cotton candy?" She asks with a sly smile.

"No." I say through gritted teeth.

"Have you ever wondered what you would look like with cone on top of your head?"

"Have you ever wondered what you would look like with a black eye?" I hiss at her.

"I have to agree with Katniss. It just doesn't suit her personality." Annie says quietly, trying to keep the peace.

"Thank you." I tell her as I turn around to change in the dressing room. Once I have my regular clothes I walk back to Madge who is eyeing a green dress that sparkles.

"I hate all these dresses." I tell her as I scowl at the rack. "They all sparkle or have a trillion ruffles on them."

I glance around the store. It's modern looking; white walls with tan trim. It has row after row of dresses. All of them seem completely ridiculous though. Definitely not anything I would ever wear. Annie has already settled on a sea green dress that matches her eyes perfectly. I know Finnick will love it. It's probably one of the only dresses in here that is tolerable.

"Can I help you?" I turn around to see a man watching me. He's dressed in all black with gold eyeliner that makes his eyes appear to glow.

"Umm…no. I'm just looking for a dress." I tell him.

"Maybe I can help. I'm Cinna." He says as he extends his hand to me. I hesitate before I take it and give him a timid shake.

"I'm Katniss." I say warily.

"Follow me." He says.

I consider declining his offer but since tomorrow is the dance and I have yet to pick anything out, I figure it would be that bad it I followed him. He leads me down a row of dresses to the corner of the store. He opens up a door and tells me to wait. A minute later he walks out, his hands behind his back.

"Close your eyes." He instructs me. I reluctantly close them and wait. "Okay. Open them."

I open my eyes and a gasp escaped my lips as I stare at the dress in front of me. It's gorgeous. The dress is red with gems towards the bottom in yellows and oranges that create the appearance of flames.

"Wow." I whisper.

"Do you like it?" Cinna asks.

"I-I love it. This dress is incredible." I say as I reach towards in and gentle grab the fabric, running it through my fingers.

"Then it's yours. I'm sure the boys will go crazy." He says with a wink. I blush at his comment and he laughs.

"Why are you giving me this? This has to be some kind of special order…or something."

"No. It was a new design I was working on and you looked like the perfect person to model it. Now, go on and try it on." He tells me with a gentle shove towards the dressing room.

I take the dress and walk to the dressing room. I slip it on and look in the mirror. The dress appears to glow. It feels like silk against my skin and I can't help but appreciate the fact that I will not be itching all night from some scratchy fabric. Just the slightest movement gives the illusion of being engulfed in fire. It is absolutely amazing.

I walk out of the dressing room and am automatically greeted with gasps. The girls all stand around me, their eyes wide as they stare at the dress.

"It's incredible." Delly whispers. They all nod in agreement.

"I want it for myself." Madge says.

"Sorry, girls but this one is for Katniss." Cinna says as he stands in the back, admiring his work. They all sigh and turn back to continue their dress shopping. Cinna walks over and takes my hands in his.

"You will have to come over tomorrow evening so I can complete the look before your dance." He tells me with a warm smile.

I can't help but smile back. "Okay."

"Great. I'll see you then."

* * *

I huff as I lay back onto my bed, exhausted. Madge decided to hang out with Annie and Delly after dinner but I had enough of everyone at the store so I went back to my room to relax. There is only so much chatter I can deal with in one evening and I have definitely had an over fill. I groan when I hear a soft knock on the door and I walk over to open it.

My earlier frustrations are forgotten once I see Peeta standing in front of me. He gives me a warm smile and I jump into his arms. He stumbles back in surprise but soon steadies himself and hugs me back.

"Hey." He whispers in my ear.

"Hi."

He pulls back and I grab his hand and pull him into the room, shutting the door behind me. He sits next to me on the bed, his smile never leaving.

"How was shopping?" He asks.

I groan. "Horrible. I had to listen to Johanna insult every single dress and Delly chatter on about gumdrops and rainbows all night. But I got a really nice dress."

"That's great. I mean the dress… not the other stuff. I'm glad you decided to go. I think you'll have fun."

"I didn't really have a choice with Madge bugging me every five minutes about it." I say.

"Are you guys still going as a group?"

"Yeah, I guess so. What about you?"

"Well… I was actually wondering if you would like to go with me." He says sheepishly. I grab his hand and give it a light squeeze.

"I would love too." I tell him with a smile. His face lights up and he leans in and gives me a soft kiss on the cheek. I cup his cheek and move his lips to mine. My stomach tingles and I pull him closer to me. His hands rest on my sides, causing a burning sensation to seep through my shirt. His kiss is gentle and so very _Peeta. _I can't help but smile into the kiss.

We pull away for air and I scoot back onto the bad, my back resting against the headboard. I pat the spot next to me and Peeta moves to sit next to me. I rest my head on his shoulder and his arms move to wrap me in their warmth. I can feel my exhaustion catching up to me and I know it will not be good if I fall asleep right now.

I bury my face into the crook of Peeta's neck and he kisses the top of my head. I feel so absolutely comfortable and I don't want to move. So I don't. Peeta looks down at me, his blue eyes full of adoration and my breath catches once again. I wonder if that will ever stop. I hope not. I smile at him and kiss the corner of his mouth before resting my head back on his shoulder, my eyes drooping.


	10. Chapter 10

**AN* I'm SO sorry this is so late! I've been busy and my other story was kind of stealing some of the attention. I couldn't help myself. ;) **

**So, theres one more chapter after this and then the epilogue. YAY! **

**Also, if you haven't noticed, I have another story posted. It's called the fighter and it's a lot different than this one. It's more realistic and the charactors are not OOC like in this one. So if you haven't checked it out, I hope you do. :) **

**Let me know what you think of this chapter. :D **

CHAPTER 10

I groan when I feel someone's hand on my shoulder trying to shake me awake. I swat at it, hoping it will leave me alone as I scoot even closer to the warmth in the spot next to me.

"Katniss!" I hear Madge whisper. I groan again, mumbling for her to go away. She huffs and me, causing a small smile to cross my face. "Get up!" She hisses at me.

"No." I mumble, my hands clutching the fabric of...my sheets? They feel different. Not as scratchy but definitely warm. I toss the thought aside. Of course it's my sheets.

"If you don't get up, I'm going to call Gale in here." She says seriously.

"So?" I ask. I really could care less if Gale sees me sleeping.

"Do you really want Gale to see this?"

"What? Me in my pajamas?" I ask incredulously, my eyes still closed.

She groans in frustration. "Ya know, any other time this would be extremely amusing." She whispers, "But we are going to be late for breakfast and I'm starving. So get up!"

"But I'm comfy!" I protest, and the arms around my waist pull me closer. I smile happily... until I realize I have arms wrapped around me. My brow furrows and I slowly open my eyes. My mouth drops open and my eyes widen as I see Peeta. His face is just inches from mine as we share the same pillow. He's sleeping soundly, his chest slowly rising and falling.

My eyes widen even more as I realize my hands clutching his shirt, his arms wrapped around me, pulling me closer and filling my body with warmth. That explains why I was so cozy...

Being careful not to wake Peeta, I roll over on to my side. I scowl when I see Madge smirking at me. "What?" I ask defensively.

Her eyebrow raises and she stares at me with amusement. "You do realize that you just slept the whole night in Peeta's arms right?"

My cheeks flush. "It was an accident. And why didn't you wake us up last night when you came back to the room?"

"Are you kidding me? This was the first night in two weeks when you weren't thrashing around in your bed all night or screaming at the top of your lungs. Of course I didn't wake you. I need my sleep, too." She says with another smirk, her hands on her hips.

"You still could have woke us." I mumble.

"No. Now hurry up and get ready. I'm hungry. Oh, and after breakfast we're going back to The Mockingjay to get ready for the dance tonight." She says happily as she flops down on her bed, folding her hands in her lap. I groan at the thought of the dance.

I try to move but Peeta tightens his grip on me and Madge giggles. I scowl at her again but she just beams at me, trying to suppress another laugh. I turn over again, about to wake Peeta.

I pause once I see him; just know _really _looking at him. A smile threatens to cover my whole face as I watch him. The sunlight streaming through the windows turns his eyelashes a beautiful golden color. He looks so peaceful and calm that I really don't want to wake him at all.

"Stop gawking at him and just wake him up." Madge says through a fit of giggles. "You two are just so cute together."

I sigh, reaching up to gently shake his shoulder. His brow creases and he shifts slightly, moving closer towards me. I giggle at his disgruntled expression and he frowns even more.

"Are you giggling, Gale?" He mumbles, still half asleep.I have to cover my mouth to keep from laughing out loud and I can hear behind me that Madge is having a harder time keeping hers in.

"I'm not Gale." I say and bend down to give him a soft kiss on the lips. His eyes immediately pop open as I pull away. I can see the confusion but the also the happiness in his bright blue eyes. I smile at him and he lets out a huge grin.

"Why are you in my room?" He asks with a smile. I snort at his question.

"You're not in your room, genius." Madge says from begin me. His eyes widen and glance behind me, his cheeks turning pink. Only then does he notice his arms still around my waist and the way our faces are only a few inches apart. His blush deepens and we untangle ourselves from each other, both of us sitting up.

"We fell asleep in here last night." I tell him sheepishly.

He gives me an apologetic smile. "Sorry." He says, his eyes casting to the comforter beneath us.

"It's okay." I say with a casual shrug. He seems surprised that I'm not mad at him. I'm surprised myself, although there's really no reason to be mad. It was an accident.

"Alright you guys. Stop staring at each other and get ready. I want food." Madge says impatiently.

I turn around to face her. "You're moody today."

"That's what lack of food does to a person." She tells me with a straight face. Me and Peeta laugh as I get up from the bed and head towards the bathroom. I stop at the door and see Peeta is already heading towards the door to the hallway. He smiles at me and waves and I smile back at him.  
Just as he's halfway out the door I call his name and he turns around expectantly. I run over to him, throwing my arms around his neck, taking him by surprise. I kiss him, that warmth I love so much returning. He smiles into the kiss and pulls me close.

Madge squeals and we break apart, both of us blushing deeply. I look at Madge to see her jumping up and down on her bed, her curls flopping around her. I give her a questioning look but she just laughs.

* * *

I can feel the smooth fabric of the dress as it slides over my body. My eyes are closed, just like Octavia, one of Cinna's assistance, told me to do. I can feel her readjust the dress, tugging at it here, pulling at it there. I bite my lip as I wait. She already did my makeup but she wouldn't show me. She said it would ruin the effect. Whatever _affect _that may be.

"Time for the shoes!" She says excitedly. She takes my hand, helping me balance while Venia slips them on. They turn me around and tell me to wait again. "Keep your eyes closed!" Venia reminds me. I nod my head and wait.

"Okay, Cinna, Flavious, it's safe to come in now!" Octavia squeaks. I hear the door open and a gasp. That's not helping my nerves.

"Can I look now?" I ask, slightly impatient. I can hear Cinna's calming chuckle and my nerves relax slightly.

"Yes." I hear him say.

My eyes pop open and I gasp at the person in the mirror. Her eyes are big and gray, her cheekbones high. She looks stunning. So much like me, be so different. But I have to remind myself it is me. And I am not pretty. I am not beautiful. I am as radiant as the sun.

"Oh, Cinna." I gush, my hand running along the delicate silk of the dress. It shimmers and glows and I can't help but be amazed.

"It's perfect." I say.

He smiles at me and I hug him. "I'm glad you like it." He tells me and I nod fervently in agreement.

"You look incredible!" Venia says.

"Like a princess...but prettier!" Octavia adds.

My cheeks heat slightly at their compliments. "Thank you, guys. You did amazing." I tell them.

"So...who's the lucky guy that gets the honor of having you as his date?" Flavious asks.

I blush again, a smile creeping onto my lips. "His name is Peeta."

"Oh I know him!" Cinna says suddenly, a mischievous look in his eyes.

I look at him questioningly. "You do?"

"He came by the other day for a suit. My partner, Portia, helped him. He's a nice guy, very charming." He says with a wink at me. "He wouldn't stop going on and on about this girl though."

My brow furrows in confusion.

"What was her name?" He asks the prep team and they all giggle before looking serious, in thought. This just confuses me more.

"Oh that's right" Cinna shouts. "Katniss. That was it."

I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding and glare playfully at him. "You scared me." I tell him.

"Your face was priceless." He says as he throws an arm around my shoulders.

"You looked like completely crushed." Flavious say with a chuckle.

"That wasn't very nice." I say seriously but it doesn't last long because soon I'm laughing with them.

* * *

My hands clutch my dress, lifting it slightly so it doesn't drag across the floor. Although the dress in comfortable, actually _being _in the dress is not. I hate dresses and wear them as little as possible. Unfortunately, I don't think I would have gotten away with wearing sweat pants and sneakers to the dance.  
I sit on my bed, waiting for Madge to finish in the bathroom. We just got back from The Mockjngjay and, in true Madge fashion; she bolted straight for the bathroom. I blame it on the four bottle of water she drank while we were there. I've learned over the years that that is something she does when she's nervous. Drinks whatever's in sight. Then in an hour or so, barely make it to the restroom.

Peeta should be here in a few minute to pick me up. I tap my foot impatiently, glaring at the door. I let out a sigh when I hear the toilet flush fallowed by the sound of water running in the sink. Madge shuffles out of the door, a silly smile on her face. Her carefully styled curls bounce up and down.

She straightens her green sparkly dress until there's not a wrinkle on it. She notices my expression and she rolls her eyes. "Calm down, Katniss. Peeta's not even here yet." She says with exasperation.

"I know, but he could have." I retort.

"But he didn't. That's the point." She says with a smug grin causing another glare from me.

Just then, there's a loud knock on the door. My face immediately breaks out into a grin and I jump to my feet. Madge laughs at my eagerness and I bite my tongue from spitting a few choice words at her. I swing the door open and my smile drops.

"Well, nice to see you too, Catnip." Gale says with a chuckle.

"What are you doing here?" I can't help but hiss at him.

"Can't I pick up my date without being harassed?"

"Your date?" I ask, confused. Madge pushes me out of the way and my brow furrows.

"Thanks for picking me up, Gale." She says, her face beaming. My mouth drops open in shock.

"You two?" I practically shout. This is just unthinkable...kinda.

"Oh don't act so surprised." Gale says with a smirk, his arm wrapping around Madge's waist.

"Can I see my date now?" A very, very familiar voice says from behind Gale. Just like that, all my other thoughts fly from my mind. Gale moves to the side revealing an extremely handsome Peeta. He is glowing, a smile spread so wide across his face. He's wearing a deep blue button up shirt that make is eyes an incredible shade of blue.

I automatically jump at him, wrapping my arms around his neck. His arms wrap around me, holding me tightly to him and I bury my face onto the crock of his neck. His arms steady me, warming me up in a way only he can. The thought makes me smile.

He pulls me back so he can look at me. His eyes travel down quickly, making me blush, before his eyes lock with mine.

"You look absolutely stunning, Katniss." He whispers in my ear, his breath causing me to shudder.

"And you look extremely handsome." He seriously has no idea. His cheeks tint pink and I smile, pulling him in for a quick kiss. Once I'm about to pull away, he pulls me back, his hands resting on my hips. I smile against his lip, that familiar warmth pooling in my stomach.

Gale's awkward cough pulls us apart. I blush, having forgotten he and Madge were still standing there. I sneak a glance up at Peeta to see his cheeks even more pink as he stares at his shoes. Then suddenly, I remember something. I turn to face him completely. "Did you know about this?" I ask him, making a motion with my finger connecting Gale and Madge.

He smiles sheepishly at me. "I just found out a little while ago."

"I wasn't expecting it." I mumble, shouting a glare at Madge for not telling me. She just smiles at me and I sigh.

"No, it was a bit of a surprise." Peeta says.

"So how long has this been going on?" I ask.

"Umm...like two days." Gale says, rubbing the back of his neck.

"What? That long?"

"I tried to tell you." Madge says. "But you were a little busy at the time." She says as she looks at Peeta than back to me. I blush again.

"Sorry." I say quietly.

"It's okay. So shall we go now?" She says as her eyes light up and Gale tightens his grip on her waist.

"We shall." I reply. Peeta offers me his arm and I greatly accept my smile growing as I see the twinkle in his eye. We all walk down the hall only stopping when we reach the door to the ball room. No sound is coming out, but I can just imagine how crazy it is in there.

Peeta pushes the door open for me and the sound of the music booming automatically takes me by surprise. I tighten my grip on Peeta's arm and he smile down at me, reassuringly. He guides me inside, Madge and Gale fallowing. My eyes scan the room and the hundreds of students dancing and laughing around the room. The lights are dimmed but a rainbow of lights surrounds the room. I hate to say this but it actually looks magical in here. There are tables along the walls and a large dance floor in the middle that's crowded with kids.

I start to get nervous. I've never been to a dance before and I really have no idea what you're supposed to do...except maybe dance. But I suck at that. Peeta senses my discomfort and he guides me over to a table, his hold on me tightening to make sure we don't get separated. I can't help but appreciate that. We sit down at a table, Peeta right next to me. I almost forgot about Madge and Gale but once I spot them already dancing I let out a sigh. Peeta take my hand in his and gives it a light squeeze. I smile at him and he grabs my chair and pulls it closer to him. I blush. I swear if Peeta keeps doing stuff like this my lips will be stuck in a permanent smile.

"What do you want to do?" Peeta asks, his voice just loud enough for me to hear over the roar of the music.

I lean closer so he can hear me. "I don't know. I've never been to a dance before."

"Me either. Would you like a drink?"

I nod my head and Peeta stands, walking over to a table lined with drinks along the wall. I fold my hands in my lap, my fingers fiddling together nervously. I look around the room and I can feel my face pale when my eyes meet a pair of hard blue ones. I haven't seen Cato since that night in the break room. His bruises are mostly faded now. He glares at me and I try my best to keep the emotion off my face. I can feel Peeta standing next to me now and I relax slightly. I look up at him and watch as he sends a glare at Cato. If I hadn't seen it myself, I never would have believed Peeta could look so intimidating. Cato stiffens and continues dancing with Clove.

Peeta sits next to me, handing me my drink. I give him a grateful smile, and not just for the drink. He seems to realize this and he takes my empty hand in his and gives it a reassuring squeeze. I tug on his hand slightly and he scoots closer, placing his arms around my shoulders.

Bringing my cup filled with punch up to my lips, I hold it back again. "Do you think it's spiked?" I ask Peeta. His eyes dart to my cup than to his, his brow furrowing. He takes my cup from me and gently sets it on the table.

"Maybe we should try the water instead." He says and I can't help but laugh. He moves to stand again but I pull him back down.

"We can get some later." I explain as he looks at me quizzically. I really would rather just have him stay with me the whole night.

"Okay."

"There's a lot of people here." I say, stating the obvious. It's like a zoo in here.

He nods in agreement as he examines the room. Just then a slow song starts playing and Peeta looks at me with a mischievous grin.

"No." I say automatically.

"Oh, come on Katniss. You're at a dance. You have to dance." He says, tugging on my hand.

"I don't know how to dance." I say simply.

"Neither do I. We'll make idiots out of ourselves together." He says playful and I smile. His flashes me a huge grin as he pulls me to my feet. He leads me to the dance floor and we stand there awkwardly for a minute before Peeta pulls me close to him, causing me to blush.

He holds one of my hands out with his while his other comes to rest at my side. Following his lead, I place my other hand on his shoulder. We spin in slow circles and I move closer to him. He grins at me, his grip tightening. I stare at his eyes. At how amazingly blue they are in the dim light. At how they are filled with so much warmth and love.

I rest my head on his shoulder and he drops my other hand so he can wrap both arms around me, trapping me with him. My hands slide around his neck and I hold onto him like a life line. The only thought I can seem to form at the moment is how absolutely perfect this moment is. He pulls back slightly and my breathing hitches as he gently takes my chin and tilts it towards him. Slowly, he leans down, his lips barely brushing mine in a soft kiss and just that simple contact sends a shiver down my spine. I stand on my tiptoes, bring my lips back to his.

I melt into his warm embrace, so completely happy in the moment. And much to my liking, he doesn't pull away, just pulls me impossibly closer to him. I grip his blue shirt in my hand, warmth spreading throught my entire body. The frown that forms on my lips when he pulls away causes him to give me an apologetic yet slightly amused smile. He releases me from his embrace as the song ends and grabs my hand. My brow furrows as he pulls me through the crowd and towards the doors.

"Where are we going?" I ask, completely confused. He pulls me through the lobby and out the door of the hotel.

He looks back at me and smirks. "It's a secret."

I grumble at that. The air is warmer tonight and I'm thankful that I won't be freezing my butt of out here. He leads me around the side of the building then down the sidewalk to a place I haven't been to yet. I have tto bite my tongue to keep myself from asking questions. I know he won't answer anyway.  
Finally, after a few more minutes of walking, Peeta stops and I almost bump into him. I glance around, confused. "We're here." He says with a wide grin.

"Where's here?"

He pulls me a little further down the sidewalk. I can just make out a few shapes on the dark light but I can't tell what they are. As we get closer, it dawns on me. We're at the ski lift.

* * *

**Sorry if this chapter sucks. And once again, sorry for making you wait so long. **

**Please let me know if you liked it or not. :) **


	11. Chapter 11

**AN***** Here's the last chapter! Besides the epilogue of course. I'm so sorry it took forever. I feel horrible but I got a little distracted with my other story...sorry. :( **

Chapter 11

"Why are we at the ski lift?" I ask Peeta.

He just smiles and tugs on my hand in answer. I follow him wordlessly, not questioning why now, out of all the other times he had as an option, he decides to take me. We're not even going skiing...Right?

"Are we skiing?" I ask, my voice almost a squeak from my apprehension.

Peeta laughs lightly as he shakes his head. "Always the most impatient. And no, we're not skiing."

"Oh. Okay."

I really can't help but be thankful. A thousand different images of me trying to ski in my dress passes through my mind and I shudder as I realize that that would probably be the single most embarrassing moment of my life. I could just picture it now. My face planting right on ground, a mouth full of snow because I tripped. That would be great.

As we get closer, a can make out the image of a man in a wheel chair through the window of a small hut as he works at some kind of control board. He pushes his glasses up his nose, his eyes studying the board and the monitor sitting beside to it.

Peeta leads me up to the window of the hut and I can't help but be reminded of the ticket booth at the theatre. It looks just like it. It takes him a few minutes but soon the man notices our presence and looks up. He and Peeta exchange a quick smile.

"Going up, Peeta?" the man asks and I'm taken aback by the fact that he knows Peeta's name. My brow furrows as I watch them.

"Yup. Katniss and I wanted to get away from the party. It was kinda loud." he gives a conspiratorial wink in his direction and I almost smack him and demand for him to tell me what's going on.

"Okay. Just hop on the bench, strap yourselves in and I'll start the ride when you're ready."

"Thanks, Beetee." Peeta says.

Just as we're turning away from the small hut I see the closed sign stuck in the window. It was either a mistake or Peeta, being the very persuasive guy that he is, talked Beetee into staying out later. I'm just going to take a stab at it and guess that it was the latter. Because really, why would anyone going skiing this late with no lights to guide them? They'd probably just end up tangled in a bush anyway.

I look up at Peeta to see him smirking. Yep. I was right.

We settle ourselves onto the bench. Peeta pulls the safety bar over us and it locks shut with a clicking sound. The bench is just big enough for two people so me and Peeta are pressed against each other. My shoulder against his, my leg against his. He wraps an arm around and I scoot closer. It still amazes me that he can feel warm even when it's freezing outside.

From our spot, he gives a thumbs up to Beetee and the ski lift starts moving up. The view is absolutely amazing from up here. Through the snow covered trees, the city lights twinkle in the background. The soft orange glow spreads across the land in all directions. It's like we're on an island in a sea of Christmas lights.

"Wow." I breathe.

A light breeze blows through the trees, the leaves rustling light. A bird flies by quickly followed by another, their wings stretched far. I lose sight of them as they fly against the black sky but my attention quickly shifts to the hundreds of stars adorning it. I don't think I've ever seen anything as beautiful as this.  
I turn to Peeta to see him watching the stars as well. A small smile tugs at his lips, his curls blowing softly. His blue eyes are bright as he takes in his surroundings, completely contempt. He looks absolutely stunning. Maybe the sky is second in beauty. He notices me watching and he glances down at me, his smile widening.

"Do you like it?" he asks.

I glance around again. "Peeta, it's amazing."

He beams at me. "I'm glad you like it." he gives me a quick kiss on the cheek and I rest my head on his shoulder. "You know, when we left for this trip, I never thought this would have happened." He says softly.

"You mean us getting together?"

"Yeah. I mean when you got on the train did you ever imagine that we'd be sitting her, kissing and hugging?"

I blush. "No. I didn't even cross my mind to be honest."

"Me either. Although, I'm extremely happy it happened. I've wanted it to happen since we we're five."

My eyes grow wide. "Since you we're five? We didn't even know each other then." I ask in shock.

His face flushes as he runs the back of his neck. He stares down at his hands, his blue eyes not meeting mine. "Well...I got a really big head start."

"On what?"

"On getting to know you." he says quietly, still unable to meet my eyes. I reach over and take one of his hands in mine, giving it a light squeeze. Even though he won't look at me, I see a small smile form on his lips.

"On the first day of school," he starts, "my father pointed you out. You had on a red plaid dress and your hair was two braids instead of one. My father said he wanted I marry your mom bet she ran off with a coal miner."

"My mom? Really?" I ask, completely baffled. My mother never seemed to mention that.

"Yep. True story. I asked him why she didn't stay with him and he said that when he sings even the birds stop to listen."

I can feel my throat tighten up, feel the tears pricking at the back of my eyes. Because it's true, they did stop to listen. Anyone did that heard him.

"So that day in music assembly, the teacher asked who knew the valley song and your hand shot straight up." he chuckles as he recalls the memory. "She put you on a stool and when you sang, every bird outside the window stop to listen."

Peeta looks at me now, his eyes so full of love that I feel like I might melt. But I can't look away. His story is so oddly moving that I feel like I could start crying at any second. Peeta reaches out and gently cups my cheek. I lean into, so grateful for the warmth he provides, my eyes never leaving his.

Slowly, agonizingly slow, he leans in. Our lips brush lightly and I shiver. I cup his face and pull him closer. I never knew a kiss could be this perfect. It's soft and kind and so full of love that I can't believe it's all for me and him. It's not a deep kiss or extremely passionate. It's a promise.

When we pull away, or foreheads resting together, I want nothing more than to freeze this moment right and now. Neither of us makes any move, too caught up in each other to care. If it were up to me, I would keep him here with me for the rest of our lives. I smile at the thought. _Our lives_.

"What are you smiling about?" Peeta whispers.

"You. Us. A lot of things. I'm really glad we went on this trip. Without it, I don't think I would have realized what I've been denying for a long time."

"What's that?"

I give him a quick kiss on the lips. "That I've loved you for a lot longer than I would like to admit."

Peeta smiles widely at me. His eyes completely light up as he kisses me. His arms wrap around my waist and he holds me tightly. "I've been waiting for over ten years to hear that." he whispers against my lips.

"Was it worth it?" I ask breathlessly.

"More than you know."

I can't help but smile at him. Peeta's expression turns thoughtful and I wait for him to speak.

"You know, I'm glad you had the nerve to actually talk to me when we were kids. I know I never would have been able to do it." he says.

I roll my eyes. "It's hard not to approach a cute little blonde kid with the most amazing blue eyes." He grins at me and I smirk. "Especially when he's crying his eyes out because 'a giant kitty cat with razor sharp teeth' ran out and scared you." I say mockingly as I recall our first real conversation.

He flushes slightly. "In my defense, that cat was crazy fast. It probably had rabies or something. And as a little kid, that kind of stuff makes you have nightmares at night."

I burst out laughing. "Did you have nightmares?" I ask through my laugh.

"No. Not because of that." he states simply.

"It was something else?"

"Yep. It was the giant dark haired guy that was towering over you while glaring at me."

"Gale!?"

He nods. "He was really tall for his age."

"Awww poor baby." I say mockingly, rubbing my hand up and down his arm soothingly. "Do the nightmares still come?"

Peeta laughs. "Oh, definitely. They still haunt me to this day."

"Don't worry. I'll protect you."

"I'm sure you will." he smiles at me and leans in for a quick kiss. "Although the nightmares were worth it."

"How so?" I ask.

"I got my two best friends out of it." He says with a smile.

"Then yes, they definitely were worth it."

He nods in agreement.

"Once the ski lift stops, we should probably go back. Wouldn't want people to notice we ran off."

"The horror!" I say in mock seriousness. "Who knows what kind of rumors they come up with?"

"Exactly. We have to keep our reputations intact."

I nod in an agreement. We stay silent for the rest of the ride. I rest my head in his shoulder while my hand grasps his. He pulls me closer and I gratefully scoot over, allowing him to warm me up. We watch the trees, the lights, anything we can see. It really is beautiful out here. It's more beautiful than I would have thought. And aside from the freezing wind and rain, Aspen turned out to be one of my favorite places. For more reasons than one.

**That was a pretty sucky ending right? I know, I'm sorry. For some reason this chapter would not come out right. I rewrote it like six times and this was the best I could do. Pretty sad. It probably didn't help that I have been extremely distracted with other things (stories) and I just couldn't concentrate. Lesson learned, though. Only write one story at a time. Sorry again. :( I just could not get into this chapter. **  
**So, just the epilogue left. Yay!**


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